A Single Hound
by Bragi151
Summary: Adventure most unto itself/ The Soul condemned to be;/ Attended by a Single Hound-/ Its own Identity. Charlie isn't Bella's father. Edward leaves. What left is there for Bella to be but herself? And who but Jake would be her Attendant?
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Not Mine.

AN: This story is dedicated to my Twilight authors. Hint: Please take the time to read _Forks in the Road_. I guarantee it is an enjoyable and ensnaring fic that you'll all love dearly. This is my first actual Twilight fic...and the only reason I actually like Twilight is Team Jacob, so here is the product of a male Team Jacob shipper who laughs uproariously every time he sees a picture making fun of Twilight.

* * *

Which is dearer, fame or your life?

Which is greater, your life or possessions?

Which is more painful, gain or loss?

Therefore we always pay a great price for excessive love

And suffer deep loss for great accumulation.

Knowing what is enough, you will not be humiliated.

Knowing where to stop, you will not be imperilled

And can be long-lasting.

-The Tao Te Ching

Bella watched with mournful eyes as Edward peeled out of her driveway like someone desperate to get away. Considering the debacle that her birthday party had been, it wasn't very unreasonable to assume that he _**was **_desperate to get away. Bella started inside, expecting Charlie to wish her a happy birthday and reminding herself that she needed to e-mail Renee about her birthday as well.

However, as Bella stepped through the door, she was met with her mother enveloping her in a huge hug.

'Mom!' Bella exclaimed as she started to wrap her own arms around her mother. She didn't know Renee was visiting. Why hadn't Charlie told her?

Bella knew that the purpose for the visit wasn't entirely celebratory, however, when she felt Renee begin to shake slightly in her arms and felt warm wetness spread along her clothes where Renee had her face planted into Bella's shoulders.

'Mom? Mom, what's wrong?' Bella asked quietly, stroking her mother's back.

As Bella tried to calm her mother down, she looked up at Charlie to find him giving her mother a hard look before he turned his eyes to his daughter and gave her a small, tight, pained smile.

'Sit down, honey,' Charlie said through Renee's now increasingly loud sobs, 'your mother and I have something we need to talk to you about.'

Charlie had his arm wrapped around a still sniffling Renee, looking acutely uncomfortable in the position. Whatever it was that Charlie and Renee had to tell Bella, she knew it wasn't good. Renee wouldn't have flown over all the way from Florida and left Phil hanging without a good reason, after all.

'Bella...' Renee finally managed through the sniffs and hicks, 'I'm so sorry,' she managed before breaking out crying again. Bella felt a wave of both annoyance and affection for her mother. This was a side of her mother that she had rarely seen, but Bella supposed her own cry baby tendencies made slightly more sense now.

'Bella,' this time it was Charlie who spoke up. At his words, Renee began to cling almost viciously to his hands, sobbing all the while, 'I'm not your father,' Charlie managed to breathe out. Bella just stared at him for a few moments, doing her best to process the line that sounded so much like Darth Vader that she wanted to break out crying. She wasn't sure if she would be crying from laughter or from shock or from the sheer incredulity of it all. Bella took a moment to compose her dog-chasing-its-tail thoughts before responding.

'Come again?' was all Bella could manage. OK. Charlie wasn't her Dad. That didn't mean, at least in Bella's mind, that the man wasn't her father. Bella had, and always would, consider Charlie her father. Genetics and blood had nothing to do with it. After all, if she could consider Carlisle, who wasn't even human, a father it wasn't that big of a stretch to consider Charlie her father.

'Your father is Joshua Ulley,' Renee said, her sniffles far less pronounced now, 'When I lived in Forks I...I made some mistakes. Charlie still took care of me, even though we both knew the child wasn't his. When you were born, and you looked so much like _**us**_ we...we couldn't...we just...' Renee shook her head, unable to continue.

'This doesn't change anything for me, Bella, you're still my little girl,' Charlie said quietly, looking Bella in the eye.

Bella just shook her head, 'I...I can't say it changes anything for me either, but why? Why couldn't you have told me earlier? Why say this now?' Bella said. She wasn't upset that her father wasn't her dad. That didn't really matter. What mattered was that her father and her mother had _lied_ to her. They had lied to her for seventeen years. They had always known. Why not tell her? What would have changed? Why?

'We just...I didn't want Charlie to tell you. We thought it would be best if it was left this way. But since you'd come to Forks...I was just so scared that Joshua would start looking for you himself, and...I just couldn't stand the thought of him telling you and not us...please understand, baby, I just wanted us to be a family,' Rene babbled, obviously sensing the acceptance, shock, and anger in Bella's posture and face.

Bella got up and walked towards her room, saying, 'I need to be alone for a little while,' before walking up the stairs going into her room and closing the door behind her, shutting away Charlie's sad look, Renee's guilty tears and a life she was never sure she had deserved in the first place.

Bella stood waiting in the woods, there at Edward's request. She wanted nothing more than to just fall into that cold embrace and just forget everything stressful that had happened. Her pain, the confusion, the lies, the revelations, she wanted to just fall into that cold place that she knew was hers and slip quietly into the darkness.

'Bella...' Edward's voice, cold and smooth rippled across her senses, 'There's something we need to talk about...'

Bella's life had officially lost all possible meaning. All of her families had abandoned her. Charlie and Renee had lied to her her entire life about her parentage. Bella wouldn't have cared. Bella didn't care. All Bella knew, however, was that they had _lied_. What was more, her other family, her beautiful glistening family of immortals, had left. Gone without a word of goodbye or regret or even love. Edward had said, in no uncertain terms, he thought little to nothing of her, and would have nothing to do with her. They were gone. They were all gone. And so, Bella wandered the woods, drifting from tree to tree from rock to rock from hill to hill, lost amidst the great evergreens as she felt her soul was lost amidst the unending span of existence, alone with but her sorrow for company.

Sam Ulley trotted through the woods looking for a lost girl. Correction, he trotted through the woods looking for his lost sister. At a loping pace that would have seemed fast to any but the pack, Sam weaved between trees and brush, testing the air for a scent that he didn't know, but by all rights, should know as well as his own.

Sam paused momentarily and tuned his nose up to better evaluate the scent he had just caught. There it was. Like a field of flowers in the otherwise musky forest, Bella's scent stood out amidst the greenery. Sam quickly phased into his human form and slipped on his cutoffs before walking into a small clearing where Bella was simply leaning against a tree, her face blank.

Sam rushed over and found she was still breathing and that she was, for all technical purposes, alive. Except her eyes. Ever since he had phased and learned about his duty to his people, he thought that nothing could come as a shock to him any more. Sam had been very very wrong. Bella just stared out into the distance, her eyes cold, lonely, sightless and broken. She made no noise when he had moved into the clearing or next to her.

'Bella...it's Sam Ulley.........your brother,' Sam sad the last quietly.

Apparently it was still loud enough for Bella to hear, at the word 'brother' her eyes snapped around to Sam.

'Brother? I have a brother?' Bella asked quietly, seeming to stare at, into and through Sam all at the same time. Sam could only nod his head. They were siblings. They were blood. No one could deny that, and for some inexplicable reason, he loved the girl lying broken on the forest floor like she was his blood. Though he barely knew of her existence up until Chief Swan had informed him that the girl was not in fact the Chief's daughter, he loved her.

'It's OK, Bella. I'm here to help you...little sister,' Sam said with a smile. Bella got up slowly, her eyes wide with shock as she just stared at Sam's face. Then she fell into his arms and wailed. And though Sam couldn't do anything but stroke the broken girl's back and then carry her to safety after she had fallen asleep from emotional exhaustion, he knew things would turn out the way they were meant to.

Bella woke up screaming. It took her a moment to realize that she was in fact in her own room, surrounded by the familiar sights and smells of her own home. Except for the marble figure that was always there. That had always been there. That _**should **_have always been there.

It all came back to her in a flood of memories and pain.

Charlie and Renee telling her she'd been lied to. Edward leaving...Edward...Edward. The name repeated itself in an unbroken litany of pain in her mind. Every time she repeated the name it clawed at her from the inside out, but at the same time, she couldn't bring herself not to think _his_ name. She couldn't bring herself not to remember that velvety smooth voice. She couldn't bring herself to think of her truck as anything other than a sign of her father's love and affection.

She couldn't will the world to pause in its stately march, for though her life had shattered and was strewn about her feet like so many sharply beautiful pieces of memory and happiness, Bella's world spun madly on without her.


	2. New

Disclaimer: Not mine.

AN: The first actual chapter of the story. Oh, and here starts the game. These quotes will be throughout the story. True to the form of Twilight, and of most Twilight fanfics, I choose to incorporate dreams into my fic. If you can say why the quote is relevant to the chapter (and the previous quote) I will write a dream in the perspective of any character in Twilight you want me to that will be incorporated first thing next chapter. It doesn't matter the character. Even the vamps (I know they don't sleep. I have my ways) So, I challenge all of my readers. First person to interpret the following passage in accordance to the game, and you will get the prize. Thank You for Reading and Reviewing and Playing!

* * *

I have no life but this,

To lead it here;

Nor any death, but lest

Dispelled from there;

Nor tie to earths to come,

Nor action new,

Except through this extent,

The realm of you.

-Emily Dickinson

Bella walked into La Push High as confidently as she were capable. Her father, and the person who claimed he was her brother, had insisted that Bella needed a change of scenery after Bella had told them why she was wandering out in the woods for hours. They were both convinced that Finding out the truth about her parentage as well as being dumped had been the emotional equivalent of dropping the H-Bombs on Japan. They weren't far from the truth.

That and the fact that Bella had refused to leave her room for three days, even to eat or drink. Sam had finally had to break down her door and had dragged an emaciated dehydrated Bella downstairs to get her food, at which point he and her father had both agreed that she needed a change of pace. Neither of them wanted to see the site of Bella's lightless eyes again as she clawed at food and water in a scene eerily reminiscent of a very bad B-Rated Horror Zombie movie.

The truth was Bella wanted nothing more than to just curl up in a ball and slowly die away. It would be what was best for everyone. No one would have to worry about her and she wouldn't have to worry about anyone else. Problem solved. Instead, her brother and father had told her that she was going to live with her brother and his girlfriend, that she was going to be going to a new high school, and that she was going to at least pretend to be human or else they were going to send her to a mental institution.

Bella's desires, at that point, had changed from a desire to curl up into a ball to a desire to get through the rest of high school. She had been knocked so far into depression she'd come right out the other end. She was still Bella, quiet as a church mouse and as humble and depreciating as a monk, but her father noticed something was different about her.

Whenever thought of the fact _he_ had left – it didn't just hurt to think or hear his name, it felt like someone was burning her from the inside out, steadily cooking her heart – or of the whole debacle with her family she felt like she had been abandoned. At first, she had thought there was no one else to live for, not Charlie and not Edward. But, after a bit of thought, she realized that she had to live for herself. Charlie wasn't to blame for the fact he wasn't her father, she had to acknowledge that one singular fact. True, it didn't change the fact he had known and had _lied_. But he couldn't have done anything to change the fact that Charlie was her father, not her dad.

But_ he_ – Edward, Bella's heart seized up briefly at the thought of him, and she stumbled a bit as she headed towards the administrator's office with the sheer emotion behind it – had left her because he hadn't wanted her any more. She hadn't been good enough for him. She had never been. She had always realized that, somewhere. That was why her romance with him had seemed so surreal.

That thought had broken her, in a way. She had given all of her love to him and had embraced him with every fibre of her being.

But he hadn't.

He had broken her, like he had so often said he was afraid of doing. He had left her broken and incomplete. And she was just that, broken and incomplete. She might never be whole again. But Edward had made himself clear. Charlie had made himself clear. Even Sam had made himself clear. She was to live. She couldn't do anything to change that. So, out of her now shattered love for Edward, she had vowed to live. Out of her love and filial respect for the man who was her father, if not her dad, she had vowed to live. Out of her new found respect and admiration of her brother, who had found her and saved her even as her life had shattered about her, she had vowed to live.

She couldn't be fixed. She hadn't been broken. She had been shattered into pieces as innumerable as the stars in the heavens. All she could do was live a new life. No one and nothing was going to prevent her from living it.

Not even herself.

Bella slumped onto her bed in her room. Her new room. Her new room in Sam's house. It was odd, living in the guest bedroom while Sam and his girlfriend, a lovely girl named Emily, lived there too. She highly doubted either her father or her new found brother would allow her to leave Sam's house to find an abode of her own. They had both made very clear that they were worried for her mental health.

Bella wondered absently why they were forcing her into a new environment that was hostile to her skin colour if they were concerned for her mental health. She supposed they had a right to be. Bella had felt broken. Bella had felt absolutely annihilated. Bella had felt as if her world had ended with all the splendour of a quiet whimper in the dead of night.

But that was the old Bella. Bella was new Bella now. She wasn't going to let herself be a victim any more, and running away or fading quietly into the night wouldn't solve anything. She had to live. Not for Edward, not for Charlie, and not for Sam. For herself.

While she was wandering aimlessly through the woods she had considered just letting it all go. Just letting herself drift away. It would be so much easier than dealing with all of this. With Charlie. With Renee. With Edward.

It had hurt to think his name then. Now, it just made her feel empty. It wasn't a type of pain she was used to dealing with, emptiness. It was new. Different.

Just like everything else in her life at the moment.

School had most certainly been different. The moment she had walked through the double doors leading into campus, she had felt the eyes of every single student on her. And then that was when Jacob had come running up to her, all smiles and warmth. Seeing Jacob smile, hearing Jacob talk, and feeling Jacob's almost too warm arm slung about her shoulders had made her feel right at home there amongst the glares and glances. It was then that Bella had known her day would be fine.

Jacob had taken her to see his friends, Quil and Embry, who had flirted shamelessly with her and received a sound thumping from an embarrassed Jacob as a result. She had been ostracised, along with her "puny freshman" friends by a girl named Leah as a result of Bella's brother being the man that had just recently dumped Leah for her cousin. She had been taunted and jeered by someone in Jake's year named "Paul" who had quickly shut up after he found out Sam was her brother. He had given her a smile and had said that he would be seeing her again "real soon". The statement both creped her out and piqued her curiosity in equal measure.

The rest of the day after her introduction, with the exception of Lunch where she had found her money stolen and had had to allow Jacob to buy for her, it had been relatively uneventful. She was in the advanced classes, which meant she was with the Reservation kids who only cared about leaving their reservation. Most of the kids there were ecstatic about having a girl who had had AP classes with them, and she had shortly been inundated in questions about College acceptance rates and her AP scores. It had been refreshing to find a few normal friends. If you could call bibliophiles normal, Bella supposed. They weren't vampires, that was for certain.

And they weren't werewolves either...

After Bella had gotten home, to be greeted by an anxious Sam and a smiling Emily, she had related her day to them – as she would for any other parental surrogate – and had expected that she'd be given leave to return to her room to work on homework and then...well and then they had revealed to Bella that Sam and his "gang" that she had heard so much about in her one day at the school were, in point of fact, werewolves.

WEREWOLVES!

He had even known that she had dated a vampire, something he had said he was very disappointed in her for, at which point Emily had given him a little slap upside the head for being too much of a man for his own good.

But they had told Bella everything. They had told her about the phasing, about the legends, about the duties of the pack. Everything.

There were no more lies. There were no more secrets. Sam had made that very clear to his new little sister. She was a part of his family, and he and Emily would do everything they could to make her feel like a part of it.

And there, sitting on her bed in her room listening as the other two members of the pack, Paul and Jared, came home and raised a storm of howls and testostrone, Bella felt like she might find a new place to belong. A new place for a new Bella. So, getting up out of bed, Bella descended the stairs and offered to cook a huge heaping cake to finish of the dinner that Emil had just made for the boys.


	3. Laughter

**Disclaimer**: Not mine. If I had owned Twilight...well, you can only imagine the consequences of such a travesty.

**AN**: I've been sort of buckling under the stress of finals. Today, I snapped. So, I wrote and I wrote and I wrote and it is now 1:30 AM...Ugh...Oh, you should expect a chapter of _Forks in the Road_ to be released either today...uh...yea today or tomorrow, as I'll have gotten it back to our lovely sowrong by then. Oh. I was too lazy to continue with the British style of quotations. So I just decided to stick to the American version. Last item on my agenda. Play my game! :'( The winner of the last game was sowrong (because she's the only person who played). All you have to do is be the first person to make a cogent connection between the quote I start the chapter with and the overall theme/meaning/whatever-you-want in the chapter itself. It's fun, I promise. In exchange, you either get a dream to start off the next chapter with, or a one-shot. Not a bad deal, right? Especially since the dreams to actually effect my story line. Heaven's know I didn't intend to use Paul this much at hte outset...and this AN is WAY too long. I need to shut up now and sleep. Thank You for Reading and Reviewing =D

* * *

Anyone who knows anything of history knows that great social changes are impossible without feminine upheaval.  
Social progress can be measured exactly by the social position of the fair sex, the ugly ones included.  
– _Karl Marx

* * *

_

It felt so _**good**_. The way she was rubbing up against him. The feel of her. It was just too much. He never thought a white girl could excite him like _this_! To say nothing of the fact she was his Alpha's little sister! Every puff of air that ghosted over his skin left him aquiver, his body alight with unadulterated ecstasy as his hands ghosted up and down his prize's sides.

Just a little more. Just a few inches more and he would be touching her. In her. She would be _**his**_. Not theirs. Never theirs.

She was the reason he was like this! She was the reason he was a monster! He **deserved** her. She _owed_ him. And he would take his fill of her. All that was left was that last little...

Paul sat up, sharply aware of the pungent smell soiling his sheets by his groin. That little bitch. Not only did she take his humanity away from him, but now his pride as well. She had come down late, ostensibly to help Emily with dinner. Sam and Emily had both been grateful for the chance to let the Alpha's imprint turn the big bad wolf into a little puppy dog for a while. The rest of the pack had been two. All two of them. Sam had a perpetual stick up his ass about something or other, and it was nice when he was distracted by Emily and ended up laying off of the rest of them.

And Bella was a decent cook. Honestly speaking, though, they deserved something for the hell that that bitch had put them through. It was her fault, after all, that the vamps had decided to stay longer and caused them all to go fury and furry. And he would make her pay.

* * *

Bella just stared at Paul in shock as he placed his tray, stacked to a height that appeared on casual inspection to be at least a foot, next to her and Jacob at the table Jacob, Quil, and Embry had staked out for the four of them. _Paul_, of all people, was sitting next to her and digging into his cafeteria food with abandon.

He just gave her a blank look as she gaped at him, "Sam wanted me to keep an eye out for you," he explained easily, devouring a sandwich in what Bella swore was a single breath, no biting or chewing required.

"Um...thank you, Paul, but I think..." Bella let her objection trail off, unsure of how to decline Paul's company. It was true she had decided to get to know the members of her brother's pack better, yes, but she hadn't expected them to make it easy on her, especially not someone as overtly hostile and confrontational as Paul. He had made it quite clear that he blamed her for every single ill that had befallen his tribe, present and future.

Last night, even as Bella had doled him out a piece of flank steak, Paul had been the spirit of vengeance, tearing into her about her alleged role in the transformation of his brothers and him and their decidedly unnatural fate until Sam had snatched the – still sizzling but thankfully otherwise empty– skillet from Bella's hands and bashed Paul over the head with it.

And yet, here Paul was, playing the good wolf and making nice. However, Bella didn't need to think more on the topic of Paul's decision to seat with her as Jacob swiftly intervened, "I don't think she wants you here, Paul," he said to the larger boy with a glare. Paul just sneered down his nose at Jacob, however, the haughty glance was rendered more than slightly ineffective due to the fact he looked like an overstuffed chipmunk with its cheek pouches filled over capacity.

Bella tried to reign in her giggles as the intensity of the glares between the two young men continued to increase, but finally, as just as the two looked about to come to blows, Bella couldn't help it anymore, and burst out in a fully fledged guffaw. The other occupants of the table stared at her as if she had lost what few faculties were left her.

"I'm sorry," Bella apologized immediately, always attempting to be polite, "But Paul just looked so cute. A perfect impression of an angry chipmunk," Bella wheezed out between laughs, which only intensified as Paul turned his glare towards her. The situation was only made all the worse when Paul's hunger overrode his common sense and stuffed the last remaining handful of tater tots into his mouth, making his cheeks expand that much more.

He couldn't help it.

He was hungry.

Bella laid her head down on one of her arms on the table while slapping her hand onto the fake wood, tears streaming down her face. Unable to take the seemingly surrealistic situation any longer, Jacob started laughing as well, which set off Quil and Embry.

This _had_ to be a bad joke, Paul thought. There the stupid leech lover was, laughing her ass off at him. He glared at her harder, which only set her off again. This was _too _**much**_**. **_Everything she did made his life absolutely miserable! Even when he got angry at her, all she did was laugh! He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of being angry, though, he wouldn't. He would sit there, calmly, while-

"Chipmunk!" Bella wheezed out again.

GODSDAMMIT!

* * *

Seeing Paul leaning against the school gates set Bella of into a fit of giggles again, her mind taking her back to the hilarity of him with an overstuffed chipmunk-face. However, seeing Paul's visage cloud over with rage at her continued mirth, Bella took a calm breath to calm down. She didn't want to antagonize her brother's pack any more than necessary, after all.

"Ready to go home?" Paul asked in a gruff voice. Bella arched an eyebrow at him while Jacob gave him a scathing look.

"You're taking me home? I can drive myself, thank you," Bella said with a pout. She enjoyed the fact that her brother was looking out for her, but that didn't mean she needed a full time body guard.

Paul rolled his eyes at her, "My _ride_ isn't going to come pick me up, so I need a ride over to Sam's before we start our run," he said, giving her a meaningful look with the word "run".

Bella let out a sigh of acquiescence and gestured over to her truck, but said, "I'm driving."

As Bella started towards her car, however, Jacob caught her by the wrist, "Would you mind it if Quil, Embry and I came over too?" he asked quietly, his eyes averted. He didn't like that Bella was going anywhere with Paul, not with the reputation he had already garnered as a philanderer and playboy. He refused to allow Bella to become another notch under Paul's oversized belt. Jacob knew what it meant when Paul had decided to suddenly sit with them. It was how Paul worked. He would always start things off all friendly and normal. Start by just being close to the girl, then closer, then closer, until he was done using her and ready to move on to the next one on his list.

Bella just gave him a small smile, "Um...I'm not sure if Sam would be very happy if you guys came over...but I'll be happy to stop buy your house after I'm done making dinner for Sam and everyone," she said easily. She knew Sam was sort of partial about only pack members or council members being allowed over to his house. He was worried about the fact that Paul, Jared and he still had volatile tempers. Sure, they were fine for school, but Sam was adamant about not wanting any more human interaction for the wolves than was necessary.

Jake looked caught between disheartened and happy at Bella's offer. Yes, he didn't want her going with Paul, but at the same time, he wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to stay too long at Sam's Gang's den. Yes, Bella would be there, but Sam and Paul, meaning Jared too, would be there as well. He couldn't handle them. He would always catch Sam or Paul staring discreetly at either him or one of his friends. It creeped him the fuck out.

So, Jacob just expressed his joy that Bella would be visiting him again with his traditional phrase, "Sure sure". Having her help with – more often than not it was outright do – his homework was always nice. To say nothing of the fact that whenever Bella visited, Charlie did to. They made his house feel like a home again. Bella, his dad, Charlie, Quil and Embry, they were all a happy family. So, Jacob gave Bella a big hug and a sunny smile before heading off home with Quil and Embry.

"Why can't I drive?" was the first thing out of Paul's mouth as Bella stepped into her truck. Bella took a long mental breath as she started the car before she answered, "Because it's my truck," was all she decided she'd need to say.

Paul glared at her, but couldn't find a reason to dispute what she had said. It _was_ her car. Still, he didn't like Bella driving. She was so slow.

"Can't you hurry it up?" Paul elected to say next, as opposed to another attempt to get the driving wheel out of Bella's hands and into his. Wait. Wasn't he supposed to be seducing her? That definitely wasn't going as planned.

Bella just shook her head and smiled, "You really do make a cute chipmunk, Paul," she said with a laugh. Paul just growled and stared out the window for the rest of the trip. He hated that she could do that. She just said stuff that made him feel like an idiot. She had done that yesterday, too. He had been calling her for all the shit she'd done to them, and had continued even after Sam had hit him over the head. But she had just sat there and listened. She had never argued once. Instead, when he'd finished, all she'd said was, "I'm sorry. I wish I could change things. If I could take your place, I would, in a heartbeat. But I can't. And all I can do is say I'm sorry and cook and clean and make the Pack's supernatural life as easy as possible, if you'll let me." She had been so fucking calm when she had said it, too. She had stared Paul strait in the eye, and for some stupid reason, he hadn't been able to look away. He hated that about her. Damn smart bookworm.

She did it again when she climbed out of the car with him at Sam's, "Thank you Paul," she said to him with a smile.

Paul just stared at her as if she had confessed her undying love of drosophila to him, "...huh?" was the only thing he could come up with in response. Bella laughed at his look, causing him to seethe on the inside again. It was a wonder he hadn't phased next to the bitch and given her a look to match Emily's.

"Thank you for helping me laugh again," she said with another smile before heading inside and saying hello to Sam and Emily.

Paul could only glare at the door.

* * *

"Absolutely not," Sam said, using his Alpha voice.

"I'm not one of your wolves, Sam," Bella said, her eyebrow ticking a steady twitch, "and I don't see why going over to Jacob's house is a bad thing," she continued, obviously irritated that her brother thought he had the authority to order her from seeing her friends.

"Embry could phase any day now, I don't want you near him when he does," Sam rumbled, still using his Alpha voice, even if it didn't seem to affect his little sister. How he wished it would.

Bella rolled her eyes at Sam's reasoning, "Sam, last I checked, I don't exactly inspire in anyone," Paul snorted and Bella quickly amended, "anyone besides Paul. I don't think me going over to Jacob's house is going to catalyze Embry's – Embry who I see every day at school Embry – change. And besides, Billy Black is there. If anyone would know how to introduce a new fangled wolf to the job, I'm sure it would be the head elder. In point of fact, why not just warn Embry now? I'm sure I could get him to come over after my visit. It would be the perfect opportunity to get everything sorted out," Bella reasoned, giving her brother a harsh and unyielding stare.

Sam let a rumble subside in his chest at being challenged, and challenged by a girl, but Paul interrupted before he could say anything, "Embry's too much of a pussy to follow you here. He's gonna think he's gonna get jumped or something," Paul sneered before resuming his inhalation of the cobbler Bella had made to go with the lasagna Emily was making for their pre dinner snack.

"We don't need the input of an overstuffed chipmunk, thank you," Bella said with a devious look in her eye. Paul would have roared his displeasure at her and the snickers he heard coming from Emily in the kitchen, Jared, who was scarfing down his own plate of cobbler, and Sam, who had lost the hard look in his eyes, but was too busy swallowing to bother. So he settled for his usual "leech-lover" stare.

Sam sighed and set his gaze heavenwards, as if asking the spirits of his ancestors for guidance, "Fine, do what you want. Just...make sure to call me if they start...I dunno, hitting on you or something," he lamented, unsure of how exactly to fit into his "big brother" role. It wasn't like he'd had any good role models for the position, after all.

Bella gave him a wink before bolting through the door, but not before giving Paul a devious smirk and a shouted, "Make sure the Chipmunk doesn't eat too much!" as the door closed behind her.

Paul ran outside just in time to phase and briefly contemplated chasing after Bella's truck. Screw his ancestors. No way in hell was he going to try and seduce that woman.

* * *

Bella chuckled as she drove towards Jacob's house. Teasing Paul was always entertaining. She really was grateful towards him, though. After the Cullens had left, she hadn't thought she'd be able to ever smile again, let alone laugh. But her new family had filled that gap more quickly than she had expected. And strangely enough, she had Paul to thank for that.

Last night, after the shouting and yelling that Paul had done, it had become painfully obvious to Bella that she wasn't the only one who had been hurt. Yes, she had a lot of shit to deal with. But so did everyone else. Her brother's Pack wasn't just her brother's Pack. It was her Pack too. They knew what it meant to lose one's self; to no longer have a hold on one's reality. In all probability, they knew it far better than Bella could. It was then that the reality of her situation had finally crystallized in Bella's mind as something she was able to understand. She wasn't alone.

Then again, Paul _was_ a bit of a chauvinist pig. And, that being said, so was her brother. Bella supposed that they were right, she needed protecting. She wasn't a vampire, and she wasn't a werewolf, so obviously, she wasn't able to deal with spades of the supernatural on her own. But that didn't mean that, as a woman, she wasn't able to take care of herself or hold her own. Just because her brother and his Pack didn't believe she or Emily were of much use, beyond their culinary and house hold skills, did not mean that their feminine charms were all they were good for. Bella planned on proving it to them, too.

* * *

Jacob was elated when he saw Bella on the doorstep. He was slightly less elated when Quil started hitting on her, but then, he always hit on her.

"So, baby, decided what you're making me for dinner yet?" Quil said in what Jake assumed was intended to be a voice that was sexy and fully of confidence. Quil was leaning indolently against the frame of the archway that separated the kitchen from the main living room and was giving Bella what Jake was again forced to assume was a gaze that was supposed to be compelling...or something like that.

Jacob wasn't at all surprised when Bella shot him down, "Well, sweety, I can't seem to decide between Dog Food and Viagra," she looked Quil up and down, letting her gaze linger meaningfully while saying, "You definitely need the latter," Bella said with a wink. Embry let out a full on belly laugh as Quil pouted and Jacob smirked.

Quil grumbled all the way to the couch where he tried to smack Embry over the head, but missed. Embry had been doing that a lot lately. It had come with his unexpected, but not unwelcome, growth spurt. He'd been getting hungrier, too, probably to fuel the obscene amount of muscle he had put on.

The subject of Jake's thoughts gave Quil a reassuring pat on the back, "It's O.K. Quil, Bella's obviously just interested in men that can perform," he said with a devious smirk while showing off his muscles. Quil let out an explicative and then tried to tackle Embry in order to exact revenge. Unfortunately for the both of them, Billy and Charlie had chosen that moment to return.

"Now now, boys, I'm pretty sure that Billy wants his furniture in tact when you all leave tonight," Charlie scolded the boys jovially.

Billy snorted out a rough laugh at that, greeting Bella who let out a tinkling little laugh, like the glass bells that Jacob imagined whenever he thought of her name, before asking the young lady what was for dinner.

"Well...I'm still not sure if I want to feed the three of them dog food," she said as she gazed meaningfully at Billy, seemingly in jest. The two looked at each other as if sharing some sort of inside joke before Billy said, "Well, I can only just imagine what you feed the Pack of boys you have over at your place," he said with a toothy grin. Bella just rolled her eyes and smiled by way of reply. She had been doing that a lot since this afternoon, Jacob thought it suited her.

Bella quickly whipped up a casserole for the boys, making sure to make an extra large portion since there were so many, and one future werewolf among them. It was when Bella was doling out the portions that Quil decided it would be wise to flirt. Lacking common sense, he neglected the Sheriff of Forks sitting across from him, his gun handy.

Quil had decided it prudent to smack Bella across the bum, as he had occasionally taken to doing during lunch when she passed by him to sit down, causing Bella to yelp, blush, and glare at him all in the space of a few seconds. This time, however, they were met by a decidedly unexpected reaction. As opposed to Jacob manhandling one of his best friends, as he always did when Quil demonstrated his stark lack of common sense, or having his brains blasted out of his head by Chief Swan, which Jacob thought would be funny, Embry jumped up and snarled at him.

"God Quil! Leave off! Hasn't she already said she doesn't want you fucking touching her!" Embry full on snarled. Jacob and Quil shared strange looks. The reaction was a-typical of Embry. Yes, he was protective of Bella since it was entirely possible he was her half sister along with Sam, considering who her father had had dalliances with more than a few tribe wives, but whenever Quil had done something like that at lunch, he had just smacked him over the head along with Jacob.

Quil and Jacob traded looks of shock while Charlie glared a whole into Quil's head instead of shooting one. Billy and Bella, however, traded a quick and meaningful look before Bella rushed over to Embry, "God! Embry you're burning up! I'd better take you home!" she said, her voice shaking with worry. She had obviously thought something was wrong with him. Could fevers explain unnatural aggression?

"I'm fine," Embry groused out, but Bella was hearing none of it. She had already finished doling out portions of the casserole and had wrapped up the leftovers to bring back to Sam's. Embry kept insisting he was fine, but Bella looked like she was about to smack him over the head with the Pyrex casserole dish and drag him over to her truck.

After ten minutes of arguing and reasoning with an overly irate and easily irritated Embry Bella had managed to finally convinced Embry to let her take him home.

Jake wouldn't see his friend again for the next week.

* * *

"What the fuck, Bella! You told me you were taking me to my house! This is Sam's place! What the fuck am I doing here?!" Embry ground out between clenched teeth, obviously annoyed at being dragged to Sam's gang's little den. They'd been giving him strange looks for weeks, and he wasn't at all eager to be in close proximity to any of Sam's deranged group.

"Sam's house was closer, and I was worried about how high your fever was," Bella cooed reasonably, "I think it's better if you just get a little bit of sleep here, for now, and then go over to your house in the morning. I'll clear it with your mom and everything, but right now, I'm more worried about _you_," Bella said, giving him a worried look. Embry supposed she was right. She _was_ his half sister, after all. The fact he and Sam shared a dad wasn't exactly widely known, but he was pretty sure that Sam had informed her of their possible, if not probable, blood ties.

"Fine," Embry rumbled, obviously not pleased with the situation.

Bella beamed him a winning smile and lead him inside Sam's house, at which point, she was abruptly landed with two average angry werewolves, an angry werewolf to be, and an angry Alpha werewolf.

"Bella..." Sam practically growled out.

"Looks like the leech-lover's stepped in it again," Paul said with a sneer, his posture practically oozing distain.

Jared just shook his head.

"Don't fucking talk to her, you fucking bitch-chipmunk!" Embry immediately shouted at Paul.

Bella immediately stepped in front of Embry and put a hand on his chest, staring him strait in the eyes, "You need to calm down, Embry," she whispered. Well, they would all hear it anyway, but she still whispered. Bella heard footsteps and knew that Sam had sent her to their room upstairs so she wouldn't get caught up in anything.

"Bella, you should leave as well," Sam rumbled out in his Alpha tenor. A detached portion of Bella's mind briefly entertained the notion of renaming it the Big-Brother voice before the rest of her mind elected to completely ignore him.

"Embry, maybe we should all step outside to sort this out," Bella said as she guided Embry outside.

However, as Embry and Bella managed to walk out the door, Paul opened his mouth again, "Oi, bitch, didn't you hear him?! Get your ass upstairs!" he shouted at Bella, his eyes holding none of the fun and games that had filled them earlier that day.

"Don't you fucking talk to her, you dickfaced chipmunk!" was what Embry intended to say. However, what he let out instead was a roar.

Paul jumped through the door, phasing on the fly, and the two of them started tussling on the dirt ground, neither noticing the fact that Sam had quite literally snatched Bella from Embry's claws.

A minute or so later, Embry turned to stare at Bella and Sam, his wolf eyes wide with shock.

Sam passed Bella over to Jared and phased himself, probably trying to calm Embry down.

Bella weaselled her way out of Jared's grasp and put a reassuring hand on Embry's muzzle, "Don't worry, Embry, we're all here for you," she said as she knelt down and stared at him in the eye, doing her best to keep every trace of trepidation from her eyes. She couldn't make this worse for him. She had to stay strong and be a pillar for him, just as he and Quil and Jared and Sam and Jacob and even Paul were pillars for her. Ever since they had left...

_Ohmyfuckinggodsanddemons what the FUCK is going on?!_ Embry let out in the pack mind, his trembling subsiding as he looked into his sister's eyes. That's right. Bella was his sister. He didn't need to hurt her. He didn't need to worry...he glanced down at his paw...his _**paw**_.

_It's alright, Embry, you're going to be fine_. Sam's voice echoed inside the heads of the wolves. Slowly, calmly, with Bella their petting and stroking his fur (which Embry found oddly comforting) Sam related everything that was happening to Embry. His fate, his responsibilities, his privileges (what few there were) were all laid bare before him as he sat there like a good little puppy.

Embry turned to Bella and gave her a quizzical head tilt once Sam had finished explaining the truth about the legends that had Embry had been inculcated with since birth, "I don't know what Sam said, since I don't share your guys' strange little hive mind, but it's probably true. Unless he said something bad about me, in which case it's most certainly all dreadful lies," Bella huffed out, shooting Sam a glare at which the collective wolves panted out coughing growls and let their tongues loll out the side of their mouths. It was then that Embry decided to give Bella a kiss.

He ran his dinner plate sized tongue up the front of her face, to the vast amusement of the assembled wolves as Bella let out a shill squeal. The girl could deal with angry werewolves and look them in the eye as they just acclimated to their fate. But she didn't like being licked.

Bella whipped the slime from her face and let her gaze shift from Sam, who was burying his face in his paws, to Paul, who was rolling around in the dirt like an adolescent puppy, to Jared, who was still human and hadn't bothered trying to retain his laughter, to Embry who just stared at her with a pleased look on his face.

The collective laughter stopped as Bella uttered the words, "All you're getting tomorrow is spinach and broccoli."


	4. Mistakes

Disclaimer: I own only my soul...and my ideas...

AN: So...here's another chapter. This has sort of turned into my guilty pleasure fic. My other projects are babies and I treat them with the utmost care, but this fic I just toss whatever I'm thinking into. To that end, I need your help. I don't really know if I should have Jacob imprint on Bella...at all. It might be fun, but then it would make the story line sweet and sugary and _easy_...and I like angst. So, I defer to the populace. The person who wins my game (for those of you who have forgotten, all you have to do is simply give me the connection between the quote and the chapter) will essentially get the power to decide if Jacob imprints. =P Oh, and since no one even **participated** in the last game, I chose this chapter's dreamer myself. If you can figure it out, you get a cookie! (Meaning you get to pick the next chapter's dreamer since I changed the game's prize this chapter) Anyway, Thank You All for Taking the Time to Read and Review =D

* * *

Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.  
-Eleanor Roosevelt

* * *

It was like light, he decided. It was shapeless, but warm and inviting. It didn't need a form in order to make him feel like he belonged in it. It was there, surrounding him, but he could never reach out and grab it. The strange part was, he was bathed in absolute total darkness. The only thing he could remember was following the beautiful woman who promised him freedom; freedom from his father; freedom from life; freedom from death; freedom from humanity.

He drifted in the darkness, dancing along the edge of what he was told ought to be mind numbing pain. He idly wondered if basking in it made him a masochist on a scale grander than anyone could ever anticipate. He had had dreams of a new life. He had had dreams of a purposeful existence, an existence where he could be him.

He drifted in the darkness turning to light, images running by him. There were images of strength, of power, of beauty. None of it mattered to him now. Everything was dust in the wind – everything but him. He was eternal now. He dreamed of it. Eternity. Perfection.

The red haired beauty had promised him an eternity, and he would love her for it.

* * *

Jake had not taken Embry's disappearance well. He had not taken the subsequent realization that Embry was now ensconced within Sam's "gang" any better. Thankfully, however, Jake hadn't associated Bella's desire to take Embry home with his inclusion in Bella's brother's Pack. Bella didn't think she could handle it if Jake suddenly hated her.

It was strange, her need for Jacob. Originally, she had thought that she needed nothing except for life. As long as she was alive, she was doing something, as long as she was doing something, she had a purpose. End.

That was it. After _**he**_ had left her, she hadn't thought she needed anything more than the spice of life. That was all that was left to her. Certainly she had nothing else. Bella had been convinced she couldn't feel love, hatred, joy, loathing, even pain.

But then Jacob had helped her smile. He had held out his warm hand to her when he didn't even know how much she truly needed it. In the midst of a world that was shrouded by the mists of uncertainty and the haze of monotony, he had lit the path for her the same way the sun burns away the morning dew.

And then she had laughed. And she had the strangest person to thank for it: Paul. Of all the people on the Earth, Bella had not expected Paul to help her laugh. But that was what made her life so very strange. She was finding warmth, love, devotion, in all the strangest places. She was finding a purpose in a void where nothing but the darkness of doubt had before existed.

Originally, she had written all of this off. It wasn't improvement. It was just her mind and body acclimating to the roles they were playing. She was an actor, playing her role in life, and they were learning the lines, bit by bit.

And then she had seen Jacob's tortured eyes as he stared at Embry hanging out with the Pack.

And her soul had been shattered again.

Bella could feel whatever it was that had come in to her life slowly die away as she saw the light that had shone through the dreary veil of depression dim. He was her light. She knew it as well as she knew herself. And she wouldn't let him feel this way. Sam had, of course, objected violently, even a week after the phasing of Embry.

The tiny little ball of glass that occupied the space where her heart had resided had broken for Jacob. She hated seeing him in pain. However, the glass had quickly sublimated and ignited upon hearing that she, too, was supposed to stay away from Jacob.

"Absolutely not," her brother had objected in the stentorian tones that marked what she had now dubbed the "Big-Brother-Voice".

Bella had merely rolled her eyes at her brother's continued use of an obviously ineffective method of control, "I thought we'd already established I'm not a part of the Pack, and therefore don't heel, play dead, or shake hands on command," Bella had hissed out, still piqued at being treated like an invalid. Sam and Charlie had both commented on her improvement. Sam, however, for some odd reason, wasn't pleased at the source.

Sam had received muted growls from the rest of his pack at that. The last time they had had this argument, the Pack had been forced to subsist on vegetables for nearly a week. After Embry had phased, it had only been intended as a single day of retribution (which Emily had happily endorsed). However, Sam had torn into her about bringing a neigh phasing werewolf home the next day, results or no. Emily hadn't wanted to get him angry, being his imprint. Bella hadn't cared. She had simply listened. It was then arranged that Emily would take care of cleaning up after the Pack, and Bella would handle the cooking for the Pack. They had, of course, devised this plan after copious amounts of "girl talk".

Sam and his wolves had been expecting flank steak and possibly a side of mashed potatoes to congratulate Embry's inclusion into the world of the wolfy. They had been met with green. Boiled spinach, steamed broccoli, and steamed green beans, without even basic forms of seasoning, had been presented to the Pack as Embry's "Welcome Dinner". Sam had, of course, refused to take back what he'd said about what he still insisted was Bella's mistake, despite the fact he was being forced to eat what Bella had essentially turned into somewhat textured nutrient paste.

"Rice and Kimchi for Breakfast, Rice and Kimchi for Lunch, and Rice and Kimchi for Dinner" were the merry words Bella had sang the next morning, and were in point of fact what the entire Pack had had that day. She had packed them all lunch. It was a lunch consisting of fermented vegetables. Just because she packed it in an air tight container...she had snorted when Paul actually passed out from the smell of _just _Kimchi. Apparently enhanced senses weren't a good thing all the time.

And on the third day, Bella had rested, and it was good. And her brother had apologized profusely. The entire Pack had gotten on his case when neither Emily nor Bella cooked. They had attempted to subsist on take out, but they couldn't manage it and feel full without going broke. The Pack had been rewarded with a sumptuous feast on the fourth day.

But now it was day seven, and Bella was again contemplating a food strike.

"I just want to cheer him up. He's been in the doldrums since Embry phased and has refused to hang out with him, on _your_ orders," Bella growled out herself. She had never been one for fights in the past. Maybe it was the fact she now had a sibling, but it seemed the only one she ever got in arguments with was Sam.

"No," was all Sam growled out. Apparently, the only time he ever lost his cool was when he argued with her. At least it wasn't all one way.

Bella threw her hands up in exasperation, "Oh of course! Let not the poor fragile, ephemeral creature be plagued by the ever so ineffable reasoning of the ever so glorious eternal!" she cried in mock adulation. Sam's eyebrow started twitching a steady tick, and Bella could swear she felt her bones vibrate with the subsonic growl he let out.

The rest of the pack just looked at her funny while Emily laughed. They hated it when Bella used big words, especially when they couldn't understand said big words.

"He could phase, I don't want you getting hurt," Sam breathed out after doing his best to enshroud himself in an aura of calm.

Bella just arched an imperious eyebrow at him.

Sam rolled his eyes, "He likes you," was all the older werewolf grumbled, as if Jacob deserved to be executed for the crime.

Bella blinked. Her brother, the giant werewolf, was being overprotective and didn't want her to see Jacob because he was afraid that his pure little sister might be tainted by the big bad wolf. Bella blinked slowly.

However, Bella caught the furtive, ashamed glance he cast towards Emily.

"You're afraid he won't imprint on me," Bella breathed out. It all made sense now, his constant insistence that Jacob in particular wasn't good for her. He didn't want to isolate her from the Pack, in point of fact, it appeared to be quite the contrary. He was quite eager for the wolves to treat Bella like family and vice versa. What Sam was worried about was Bella forming any sort of connection to Jacob before he phased. He didn't want Bella to end up like Leah.

Sam's eyes shot to hers, Bella's whisper had been so quiet not even the other werewolves had heard, to say nothing of Emily. It had been just for her big brother.

She saw it there, the pain and the guilt and the sorrow, it was warring with the contentment and the happiness. And Bella knew instantly he wouldn't wish those feelings on anyone, even the vampires.

Bella turned towards the stairs without another word, trudging up each stair dutifully.

"I'll make some Key Lime Pie for breakfast tomorrow," she muttered loud enough for the Pack's ears to pick up. A chorus of whoops and howls followed her as she walked into her room, smirking at her Pack's – her _family's_ – satisfaction.

* * *

Despite her resolution not to torture her brother and the Pack with another bout of greenery and fermented cabbage, Bella still decided to hang out with Jacob. He needed her and she needed him. He had revealed, more than once, his trepidation at the Pack's interest in him and Quil. His and Quil's sentiments had only become that much more poignant after the loss of one of their best friends.

Sam didn't want to think that his actions were having a detrimental effect on the others, but it was. She knew that Sam didn't intend to cause harm, but he was worried about the secret of the wolves spreading. The only problem was, they had to be let in on the secret some time or another, why not do it early so they had time to brace themselves for what was to come?

And then there was imprinting. Jacob hadn't quite made himself clear in his advances on her, but then again, Bella had never been on e to see these things for what they were either. That being said, Jacob was her light, he was that bright ebullient force in her life that guided and aided her, just as she was now trying to reassure and ground him while they walked to lunch.

"Look, I know the guy is your brother and all, Bells, but you've got to be at least a little creeped out by the fact he and his clones are always lurking everywhere half naked," Jacob muttered to her. Oh, and then there was the fact that Jacob was highly agitated that Sam was her brother.

"Jacob, I'm not going to start feeding you the 'Sam is the greatest thing to happen to the tribe' junk that you hear from your dad and the other elders," Bella said gently, referring to the constant arguments Jacob had gotten into with Billy over Sam and his behaviour, "but I am going to tell you that while, yes, he does definitely seem a bit shady and weird most of the time, it's just because the Council have given him a lot of responsibilities. He and his...friends are just trying to cope with whatever it is the Council has them do," Bella reassured, patting Jacob on the bicep before he slung his arm around her in a familiar fashion.

Jacob had shot up recently, too. It was just another sign that he was going to change soon. The school year had started with Bella and Jacob being almost even in height, Jacob sporting an inch or two more height than her. Now, however, Jacob was at almost a full six feet, and sported lean musculature that, while not as impressive as the bulk toted by the other wolves, was close.

That, added to the fact that Jacob and Quil had actually come over to her house once, Sam or no Sam, to study and flirt, had put Sam on edge. He didn't want them near her. End of story.

Bella, of course, casually went about defying the nominal chief of the tribe she was allegedly part of. She still couldn't believe it, as she was as white as a dove, but that was immaterial.

"Oi, white girl!" Bella heard a familiar voice ring out, sharply mirroring Bella's own somewhat prophetic thoughts. She just sighed and turned around to see Leah marching towards her.

"Yes, Leah, is there something I can do for you?" Bella said with a sincere smile suffused with polite warmth. Leah twitched back slightly. It was how Bella always dealt with the bullies. They were constantly off-put by her kindly demeanour, servile or no.

"I want to talk to you in private for a sec," Leah said impatiently as she tapped her foot on the ground in a steady rhythm, her balance regained after Bella's initial non-vampiric sparkling wore off.

Jacob had arched an inquisitive eyebrow at Bella at that. It was widely known that Leah hadn't been the sweetest girl in the world, even before the whole debacle with Sam. Her breakup with what the entire school had known was the love of her life had only made her that much more confrontational. And the entire school certainly knew that she had expressed clear distaste for Bella, as the new woman in her former lover's life.

Bella just smiled at him and waved towards the cafeteria by way of reply, signalling that she was more than willing to talk to Leah alone. Jacob frowned at that, Bella wasn't one to stand up for herself, despite the occasional argument he had heard her get into with her new brother, she had never bothered to put herself up against the school bullies and their incessant torment.

However, Jacob was Jacob, and acquiesced to her wishes, heading into the Cafeteria along with Quil, whispering to his friend about the potential reasons the "Queen Bitch" could have for asking to talk to his Bella privately.

Once Jacob and Quil were out of earshot, and the hallway was relatively clear, Leah finally decided to speak, "Now that you're scrawny freshman boyfriend is out of the way, I have a favour to ask," she said plainly, her voice blunt and cutting strait to the point.

Bella blushed and looked down, "He's not my boyfriend. And is that usually how you ask for favours?" Bella mumbled as she felt the blood in her face burn her skin.

Leah sighed, agitated more at herself than at Bella's weak rejoinder, "Sorry. Look, I know I haven't exactly been a sugar and sunshine to you...but..." Leah trailed off, unsure quite how to apologize for something that, strictly speaking, wasn't Bella's fault.

Bella just nodded, "Sam," she said in an understanding tone of voice.

Leah just closed her eyes and nodded, holding back a flood of emotions at the still fresh wound.

"But what was the favour you wanted to ask?" Bella inquired, her head tilted to the side.

Leah smiled wanly, grateful for the change in topic, "I...had a few issues after the breakup. I'm behind in Calc right now and I figured you were the best person to help," Leah said with a shrug.

Bella's brow furrowed, "Why would you think that?" she asked confused. There were plenty of other Quileute students that tutored the mathematic subjects, and Bella didn't consider herself particularly intelligent.

Leah turned a conspiratorial smirk towards the girl in front of her, "It's no secret that you were the only reason that dunce Paul managed to actually get above a D on his last Algebra exam. If you can help him, you can pretty much help anyone," she said ruefully.

Bella laughed gently at that, remembering the time she had spent tutoring Paul at Sam's request, "It was just a quick review of the material, I'm sure he would have been fine either way," Bella said depreciatively, obviously sure she had no major role in Paul's success.

Leah just shook her head, "Is it OK if we meet up tomorrow after school to set things up? I have some shit to sort out today," Leah said apologetically. She was grateful that Bella seemed like an actual human. Sure, the girl hung out with freshman all the time, but that was partially her fault for ostracizing her. Leah made a vow to include Bella in more upper class activities. Well, more "stupid kid" upper class activities, as Leah was sure Bella got along just fine with the smarties on the rez.

Leah turned towards the table she usually sat at during lunch, watching Bella smile at Jacob and sit on the opposite side of the table from him and Quil. "Not my boyfriend" Leah played the words over in her mind then snorted. Sure. And she was the Bloody Queen of Fucking England.

* * *

Bella smiled at a joke Quil had cracked. Well, she thought it was a joke, Jacob knew better. Quil was a skirt chaser whose reputation was second only to Paul's. Then again, Jacob highly doubted that Quil could ever actually score with her. _You highly doubt you could score with her either_, a poisonous little voice in the back of Jacob's mind whispered, which he quickly quashed. Yeah, there were rumours about Bella. There were rumours that she had moved in with Sam not only because she had discovered her heritage, but also because of the night she had been found. It had been the same night Edward Fucking Cullen had broken up with her.

Bella had revealed bits and pieces of the encounter to her, and he had pieced it all together from things his dad, and even Sam, had told him. Edward, the pale albino fucktard, had abandoned Bella in the woods after breaking her heart and soul like some sort of defective toy. Jacob stared at Bella's face as it was still lit up in a smile from the joke Quil had made, quickly turning to a blush as Quil followed up his joke with a far more suggestive comment, earning him a smack on the back of the head, courtesy of Jacob.

She was so beautiful when she smiled. She was absolutely radiant when she laughed. Jacob knew she was the only girl for him, the only problem was, that she didn't know he could be the only guy she ever needed. And Sam Uley wasn't helping any.

Bella's slight smile and blush disappeared as she spotted her brother leaning against her truck, a scowl marring what Jacob already considered pretty fugly features.

Bella marched right up to him, Jacob, and Quil as well after a moment's hesitation, following her to confront the large man.

"What is it, Sam, I can drive home by myself," Bella stated more than asked quietly as she stalked up to her older brother.

Sam's eyes bored into Jacob and Quil in turn, fixing the two of them with a look Jacob could only find disturbing. It was like he was waiting for them to do something. Dance the marigold or grow another head or whatever it was, the look that Sam always gave the two of them whenever they encountered one another since his break up with Leah freaked the smaller boy out.

"I asked you not to," Sam replied cryptically, his eyes fixed on Bella now. Jacob let out an internal breath of relief that he wasn't staring at Quil and him anymore.

Bella's gaze narrowed, though it was sort of hard for the small girl to be intimidating, "And I baked you a pie," she replied just as cryptically.

Sam's face twisted into a grimace at that, "Look, I know you don't exactly want to, but-" Sam's words were cut off by a clear female voice.

"Bella, I know I was going to talk to you tomorrow, but I wanted to know...what the _hell_ are **you** doing here?" Leah snapped upon seeing her ex looming over her new tutor, maybe new friend if Bella proved to be more human than the man standing imposingly before her. And by the looks of things, she was. If the girl had the balls to give Sam a hard time, Leah certainly wasn't going to complain.

"Talking with my sister, Lee Lee," Sam said with sad eyes.

"Don't call me that" Leah hissed as the words left his mouth. She refused to be called that by him. He didn't deserve to call her that anymore.

Sam ignored her, staring pointedly at his sister, who in turn ignored her brother, "Is there something I can help you with, Leah?" Bella asked with a smile and the same tone she had used earlier that day. Leah didn't miss the implication.

Leah smirked slightly at Bella's small jab, maybe the girl had more of a backbone than she let on, "Oh. Yeah. I was wondering if maybe we could start the whole tutoring scene tonight? I know I said I was busy, but I just got some grades back and..." Leah trailed off, her eyes roaming, unwilling to act sheepish.

"Bella," Sam growled out quietly, obviously trying to get his sister's attention.

Bella continued to ignore him, "If you're sure, where do you want to meet up?" she asked with a sunny smile, her tone and manner indicating she gave no heed to the ominous presence at her back.

Jake spoke up at that, doing his best to ignore the fuming Sam, "Would you mind if Quil and I tagged along? We could all meet up at my house if that makes things easier. I know I've been having problems with English again," Jake said with a smile directed at Bella.

"Bella!" Sam rumbled in a low commanding tenor, obviously trying to get his sister to listen to him through sheer will.

Bella remained unconcerned despite the tone, "You've always needed help with English, Jake, I'd be happy to help you two as well, if Leah doesn-"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Sam bellowed, his form visibly shaking.

"'t mind..." Bella sighed as she turned to see her brother look ready to practically rip out of his skin. Everyone was shocked at the sheer volume at which Sam had bellowed, and a deathly silence reigned over the parking lot.

Upon seeing her brother's state of mind she quickly turned to her three companions and mouthed, "Call me later," before handing her brother her keys and getting in the car.

Sam shot a death glare at Jacob, giving the young Quileute just another reason to hate the older man, before climbing into the driver's seat and speeding off, despite the state and nature of Bella's truck.

It took a full five minutes before anyone worked up the courage or wits to go back to their daily routine.

* * *

Sam was still shaking as he pulled into the great open area that served as the driveway for the house he shared with Emily. He had nearly ripped the steering wheel from the dashboard several times out of the need to find some way to release all the repressed stress and misdirected rage.

Bella could infuriate him to a degree he had never thought possible. Before his change, Sam knew he had generally been perceived as relatively mild mannered and reclusive. Now that he was a werewolf, even with the attendant temper, Sam still liked to think of himself as still having a considerable fuse. Bella somehow found a way to burn the whole damn thing in mere moments.

Bella and Sam both got out of the car at the same time, neither one acknowledging the presence or anger of the other. Sam waltzed up to the door of his home, only to pause as Bella held out her hand expectantly, the glare directed at his hand indicating the object of her immediate desires. However, Sam knew very well what Bella would do once she had her keys. And, moreover, Sam knew there was but a single recourse he could take as a responsible brother.

Sam smiled at Bella warmly, imitating the smile she had given Leah while ignoring him earlier, and then yanked on the house key. It broke the key ring that Bella used to contain her house key and car key, the two being the only keys she really kept.

Sam could swear he saw a vein on Bella's neck throb as he handed her the house key. She didn't say anything as they walked into the house together.

"No one is going to help Bella get to Jacob's house," Sam said immediately once he walked through the door.

The heads of every one of the Pack members swivelled over to the male half of the brother-sister duo that had just entered before they nodded in unison. This wasn't about to end well.

Bella plastered sugary sweet smile onto her face, "I have a dozen cookies with the name of whoever wants to help me on them," she said sweetly. The Pack's head swivelled the other way. Bella's baking was absolutely phenomenal, and every member of the Pack was willing to defy an almost-Alpha order if it meant a dozen of Bella's cookies.

Sam growled lowly and the Pack's head swivelled again, acknowledging their Alpha's desires.

Emily, on the sidelines, was doing her best to keep a fit of giggles away from the Pack's ears as she saw the entire batch of boys act like little puppies at a ping pong tourney.

Bella brightened her smile by a few watts, "I'll let whoever helps me pick what we eat for dinner for a week," her voice lilting tauntingly. The entire Pack's eyes bulged, even Sam's.

Jared had just opened his mouth to agree to the conditions when Sam growled, "No one is to help Bella get to Jacobs house..._**ever**_," he said in what was unmistakably the command of the Pack's Alpha.

Everyone slumped in their chairs, disappointed that they'd missed the opportunity to decide their own food for a week, and somewhat fearful of Bella's culinary wrath. Their fears, however, were unfounded.

"You......." Bella started, her face turning red from an emotion other than embarrassment. Sam's gaze fell tauntingly to her, as if to say, "Ha. Top that."

Bella's phone ringing saved the Pack from the possibility of a month long food strike. Bella's eyes flitted to the caller ID before she strode towards the door.

"Who is it?" Sam rumbled out. They both knew that if Jacob were the one calling, he wouldn't allow her the luxury of a private conversation. However, if the caller were...

"Just someone interested in my services as a tutor," Bella replied nonchalantly as she stepped through the door. Despite her anger at her brother, she would never do anything to truly hurt him, his pack, or his relationship with Emily, and Bella was quite sure that if the Pack found out that Bella was becoming friends with Leah, life would get messy in short order.

Sam, correctly interpreting her comment, said nothing else as he sorted out the patrol schedule with the rest of the Pack. Since there were so few of them, Sam was ordering Jared and Paul to take the next few hours, Sam and Embry taking the rest of the night shift.

The Day shifts was usually just one of them running around while the others did their best to get as much sleep and work done as they had time for. However, with the addition of Embry, time had become less of an issue, but it was still wearying work.

Meanwhile, Bella arranged things with Leah, "So, I guess we're going to meet up at your boyfriend's house then?" she asked nonchalantly.

Bella's brow furrowed in agitation, but she schooled her voice to a calm cadence before responding, "I think Jacob's house would be best, Sam probably won't follow me there, no matter how angry he gets," she speculated, already having given up on correcting Leah's misplaced notions, which Bella hoped was mere teasing.

"Wait, I thought you said Sam had taken your keys, how are you planning on getting here anyway? I don't think your own personal watch dog is going to let small dark and cutsy over to pick you up," Leah said without a trace of actual barb in her tone.

Bella smiled at the somewhat unforgiving nicknames before responding herself, "Oh, I have a spare," she said as she took her shoe off and fished the spare key out from underneath the sole.

She smiled brightly as Embry walked out of the house to phase and run home, this being his only chance to get some sleep before his patrol. Before Embry could phase, however, Bella hoped into her truck and started the engine, peeling out of the clearing as quickly – though still at a safe pace – as possible before she heard her older brother's bellow of displeasure chase after her, "BELLA!"

Bella hummed a springy little ditty as she drove towards Jacob's house, only pausing as a "For Free!" sign caught her eye. She quickly hopped out of her truck and made a quick deal with the dealer looking to get the merchandise off of his hands. He helped her load them into the back of her truck and Bella was on her way again, hoping the acquisition would help bring a smile back to her sun's face.


	5. Seen

**Disclaimer**: The only thing I own is my brain.

**AN**: Sorry for how long it took me to update, but update I have. I'm going to use my summer break to the fullest, so something should be posted again soon. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, I know I didn't respond immediately, but I hope to change that now, rather than waiting until I post. And I do love reviews, no matter what's being said. Oh, I've come to understand that the "Game" is confusing people. It isn't that you need to find a quote to interpret. Just the one bellow this AN that starts off every chapter. This quote...well...I thought it rather appropriate. I hope you all enjoy the chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank You Very Much for Reading and Reviewing.

"What has Been Seen Cannot be Unseen" – The Interwebs

* * *

She railed and railed and railed against the bars of pain that constricted her to a cage of misery, but found that her only reward was regret. She pounded against them. She screamed at them. But they did not move.

She battered them with her will and her mind and her soul, desperate to be free of the fetters that she had willingly accepted, that she had taken upon herself as a sign of her love for _him_.

It hurt to speak his name here, in the deepest recesses of her unconscious mind. She didn't care when she walked about her life, willing herself to be as strong and as independent as possible. But it was all a lie, it was all a farce, it was all a mask. She didn't want to be strong without him. Without him in her life, there wasn't any point, even though she would never admit that to herself, or anyone else for that matter.

Something rustled behind her and she spun to meet it. Nothing. A whisper to her right, and she was met with _his_ eyes.

They stared unblinkingly into her own, the look itself declaring his undying devotion and love and sympathy, boring into her soul as she bored into _his_.

And then _she_ came. And then _he_ turned away. And then she was alone.

Leah sat up starkly, dripping bullets of sweat. She felt a sob rack her body, the only memento of her now former lover, the boy who she was certain would always hold her heart.

* * *

Leah gave Jacob a suspicious look as the boy practically fawned over Bella, who was either extremely dense, or took this as the type of thing best friends do. Leah had discovered, within moments of entering the Black household, the horribly degrading position that Jacob had been unequivocally placed in by Bella: "The Friend Zone".

It appeared, at least to Leah, that the boy was doing his level best to get himself out of the Zone with all due haste. However, it also appeared to Leah that Bella had no desire to change the status quo as long as Jacob remained a part of her life. She calmly wondered if she should help her new found friend by helping Jacob before starting at her own thought process. Bella Swan was her friend? Leah gave herself a mental snort. Perhaps.

The four of them, Bella, Leah, Quil and Jacob, were all arrayed on the floor with their work spread about them. Quil and Jacob sat next to one another while Bella and Leah sat a little farther away, seeing as how Leah didn't want her work to be mixed up with the stupid assignments of the Freshmen.

Leah turned her attention back to the problem that Bella was explaining to her again, her voice calm and somewhat didactic, but not condescending. Leah enjoyed the way Bella somehow seemed to be able to educate her and the Freshmen without being overbearing or even haughty in the way she spoke. She simply dispensed the information in the most efficient way she knew possible and was done with it.

"Bella," Jacob whined, indicating a particularly hard problem on his grammar sheet.

Bella merely rolled her eyes at her friend's antics, "What is it, Jacob? I know you're not having problems with tense again, I've explained it to you five times already," she said ruefully.

Leah just snorted, she knew very well that Jacob's "problems" were no more than an excuse to have Bella be as near to him as possible. Unfortunately for the love addled teen, fate had other plans.

Bella started rummaging through her bag before exclaiming, "I'm sorry guys, I forgot the books I needed for _my_ homework in my rush to get here," _and away from Sam_, she added mentally, "I need to go back to Sam's house real quick, and then I'll be right back," Bella said with a smile.

Leah gave her a wry grin in return before saying, "I think I got a handle on this stuff. I'll just do the problems I can handle and leave the rest for when you come back," she said easily. Leah didn't feel the need to posture in front of the pale young lady, for some odd reason. Then again, Leah rarely felt the need to posture to anyone in the first place.

"But Bells, you've only been here for an hour. You know Sam's not going to let you come back. Just stay here a little longer and then go back once we finish, please," Jacob implored, looking up at Bella with his best puppy dog eyes and moving his hand to wrap around hers.

Quil put on a lecherous grin, "Yeah, come on Bella, if our sexy tutor isn't here, we won't get any work done," Quil purred as he started to slink over towards Bella. He managed to climb half way over a shocked Bella's body before Leah reached over and smacked him on the head with a ruler.

"Shit! Fuck that hurt! What was that for?" Quil exclaimed as Bella hastily resumed gathering her things while blushing furiously and Jacob did his best to restrain a snicker.

"That was for being an ass. You're not old enough to hit on Bella," she said as if it were common sense.

"What? How old would I have to be to hit on-" this time Quil was cut off as Jacob's hand smacked the back of his friend's head.

"I think she means Bella's reserved for the Upperclassman, idiot," he said, shaking his head at his friend's stupidity.

Leah just winked at Jacob while Bella's back was turned and Quil was rubbing his sorely abused cranium, "Maybe if he were a real mature Freshman, I'd consider it. But as things stand, Quil, you're nowhere near Bella's league," Leah said with a sunny smile.

"But I'm a Sophomore!" Quil blurted in response.

Bella blushed even harder before saying, "At least wait 'till I'm gone if you guys want to talk about me like I'm not here," she mumbled.

"Oh, you were still here Bella? I'm sorry, didn't notice you," Leah grinned out.

Bella just shook her head and laughed, then let out a little gasp of surprise, "I forgot, Jacob, I have something I really want to show you, mind coming with me?" Bella's tone was completely innocent, as was the smile she wore, but Jacob and Quil's minds immediately took turns for the gutter at the little twinkle of mischief that lit up Bella's eyes.

"Can I come too?" Quil blurted out before the rest of his brain could kick in.

Bella gave him a wide beaming smile, "Sure, but I'm afraid you won't get as much enjoyment from it as Jacob will," she said the last a bit sadly. Leah just let her face drop into her waiting palms as she watched the two freshman drool over Bella's too-straight-forward-for-her-own-good speech.

"Oh...I think I will..." Quil whispered.

Quil and Jacob were reading far too into it for their own good, as was evidenced by the looks they gave one another as Bella spun on her heal and exited the Black household, waiting for the two enamoured young men to follow. Leah followed, just in case. She didn't want Bella to be jumped by overly hormonal Freshman, after all. That would damage her reputation as a defender of the virtues of Upperclasswomen.

* * *

Jacob's smile persisted after Bella unclothed her gift. It was slim and supple, and had Jacob and Quil's mouths playing the role of faucets. Leah wasn't so easily impressed.

"They're motorcycles," she said haltingly, not sure why Jacob and Quil were obsessing so much.

"EXACTLY!" Jacob shouted with enthusiasm as he bounded over to the bed of Bella's truck in order to further inspect his gift.

"I saw them for sale…well, more like being given away. I thought you might be able to fix them. I'd be happy to give you one of them as payment," Bella said with a wide smile, clearly pleased with herself for bringing such a bright smile to Jacob's face.

Leah took the moment to analyse her new…friend's(?) expression. She was certainly happy that Jacob was happy, and Leah supposed that she could understand why. After all, it was Jacob that had been supporting her, emotionally speaking, on the Rez this entire time. He had to be important to her, especially considering the rumours of Bella's invalidism after getting dumped by Edward I'mma-cold-fish-Cullen. But there was…a look of peace, or serenity, or just _something_ that Leah couldn't quite put into words. It was there, in Bella's bearing, in her expression, and in the way her eyes burned a little. Leah could only tell that Bella cared intensely for Jacob, she wasn't sure in what way or how or even to what extent those feelings truly permeated her, but she _**knew **_beyond any absolute certainty, that Bella cared for him deeply. Too bad for Jacob it wasn't love and it sure as hell wasn't obvious. Oh well, she would give the upper classmen a chance, and if they all failed – when they all failed more like it – Leah would give Jacob some pointers, some advice, and good kick in the ass, and that would be that.

However, as Leah watched Jacob's expression dim slightly as Bella drove away, she hoped to all hell that what happened to her wouldn't happen to him too.

* * *

Bella winced at the gravel crunching under her truck's tires as she parked in the driveway of her brother's house. With his hearing, he had probably heard her coming for miles, and would most certainly be ready to scold her the moment she stepped through the doorway. She didn't have a choice, she would just have to walk in, stoically ignore his rant, grab the textbooks she needed to finish what little homework she had neglected to do in class, and walk out again. Sam was too much of a softy to actually physically stop her…right?

Bella decided not to think about it as she burst dramatically through the front door, projecting an image of confidence and poise…

…only to trip on one of the panels and fall flat on her face. Her face flushed red, Bella expected a chorus of laughter to greet her as she rose to her feet on her own, but found the house strangely empty.

Quickly collecting her scattered faculties, Bella started walking to her room, not about to question her bout of questionably reasonable luck. She didn't bother sneaking, Sam and/or any of the other wolves would hear her anyway, and she preferred alacrity over an attempt at stealth anyway.

She swept into her room, gathered her books – she was tempted to take other things, but she shuddered at the thought of what Sam would do if he presumed that she was spending the night at Jake's house – and bolted out the door, about to make her way down the stairs when she paused.

The door leading to her brother's bedroom was slightly ajar and she could hear muffled rummaging, as if someone were looking for something. Fearful that someone had broken into the house and was stealing something, Bella decided to start creeping – a normal human would hopefully have less acute hearing, and it would therefore be worth it now – and carefully peered through the crack.

Bella leapt back instantly, her face beat red. She looked up and down the hallway, searching for some sort of indication that this was all a fabrication of her imagination. A muffled moan jolted Bella's mind back into her body and sparked her celeritous departure. She jumped in the truck and drove at reckless speeds, not caring about the speed limits, as she tore towards Jake's house.

She really needed her own place.

* * *

"It'll be fine, Dad, Sam can come over every day," Bella said into the cell phone her father had insisted he get for her after she had been found in the forest.

Jake's head popped up and swivelled, like a meerkat alerted to danger.

Quil, Jake and Leah stopped their arguing over the math problem they were debating to watch Bella walk through the door, trip then catch herself as her foot somehow snagged the threshold divider, and then began listening to Bella's conversation.

There was a moment of muffled noise coming from the earpiece of Bella's phone before she turned beet red and replied shakily to her father's comment, "The…there's no reason you need to know why I want a separate place, I just do," Charlie said something else that caused Bella to make a small "O" with her mouth and turn even more red, were such an act physically possible, "I am _not_ bringing guys home!" she scream-whispered into the receiver of her phone, causing Quil to slap Jake on the arm and waggle his eyebrows suggestively.

Jake held similar hopes, but highly doubted Bella would want a place for anything so…carnal. However, he was a teenage boy, and a very healthy teenage boy at that, and he couldn't help but speculate.

Bella sighed, still seemingly oblivious to the presence of her audience, and whispered into the phone so low that none of them could hear. There was a long silence from the other end before a grunt sounded and a wave of relief, as well as her normal colouring, washed over Bella's features.

"Thanks, Dad, I'm sure I'll find something, bye, love you too," she said as she snapped the phone shut, turned, and had her eyes bulge as she met everyone's inquisitive stares.

"Oh…um…hi?" she asked more than greeted.

"What the hell was that all about?" Leah interrogated mercilessly, already demanding details about how and why Bella needed to move. Jacob was just as interested, and was more than happy to let Leah ask, for fear of making himself out to be an idiot in front of Bella.

Bella blushed an interesting shade of tomato/strawberry before answering, "Well…I don't like having to sneak in and out of my own house if I want to get books or other things I use to study just because my brother is a little…ah…" Bella's blush intensified briefly, "piqued at me," she said quietly, looking Leah in the eye.

Leah snorted and turned back to her work, "Good. You have a spine."

However, as Leah turned around Jake caught a shadow of regret spread across Bella's features before she sat back down and got to work with them again, this time doing what little was left of her own homework on the side.

It was nearly ten o'clock when they had all finished. Everyone was happy to for the torture to be over and done with, and they were all looking forward to Bella's cooking, even Bella, if only because she was starving and needed food immediately.

"I swear, Bella," Leah exclaimed as she smelled what Bella was brewing in the kitchen, "if I were a guy, _I'd_ hit on you. Damn that smells good," she exclaimed as she shook her head in consternation. Most people on the rez understood that Leah's forte was not in her domestic skills, and that she was proud to be an otherwise savvy, intelligent (when it came to subjects that interested her), and independent woman. Jake could still tell by the way she was looking longingly at the kitchen that she felt at least a pang of envy for Bella.

Jake's stomach immediately started to growl in protest of further abuse to his brain without appropriate compensation, paid by way of stomach. Quil's stomach, upon hearing the complaints of its brother in arms, also roared loudly at the current state of the empty floor – after all, what self-respecting teen would deign to use a table?

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Bella moaned out with a sigh that still caused Jake's imagination to turn for the gutter before he got it back under control, "Here, lemon chicken with pasta," she said as she laid out three large plates for the others.

They dug into it with abandon, only Jake having the presence of mind to savour the food.

"Great as always, Bells," he said around his food. Or at least, that's what he hoped he said. He gave her a smile that he was certain made him look worse than Paul with his chipmunk cheeks, but she graced him with a warm smile anyway.

Quil, however, noticed Bella's lack of food, "Uuu nn't ooin oo ee?" he garbled.

Bella arched an eyebrow in incredulity while Jake choked on his food and Leah snorted into her water, "Aaa?" Quil questioned indignantly. Or at least, that's what it sounded like.

"Um…assuming you asked 'You aren't going to eat?' the answer would be that, yes, I am going to eat. I have something ready over at…" she trailed off as a wolf howled into the night.

Bella shook her head to clear it, "I have food over at Sam's place. I started cooking it before I left for school," she said shakily as she started to clean up. A chorus of wolf howls sounded through the night, causing Bella to stare at the door.

Maybe she was worried that she'd need protection getting home?

A knock on the door jolted everyone in the room except for Bella, who just sighed, rose, and went to open it, "Hello Paul," she said before it was halfway open.

He merely cocked an eyebrow at her deduction of his identity, "Sam wants you home. Now," he rumbled.

"Hey! Look! It's the Chipmunk!" Quil called over from his homework, causing Paul to glare at them before turning his gaze to Bella.

Jacob noticed him quivering slightly until Bella walked over and put her hand on his shoulder, causing a stab of jealousy to flash through the younger man. Why was it that Paul got Bella's attentiveness? He was such an obvious jackass that he didn't deserve it, especially with the way he treated her. Granted, he hadn't been overtly rude to her after he had stopped his attempts to seduce her, but he was still a bastard by principle.

Bella gave Paul a smile and then turned to Jacob, "Thanks for having me over, Jake, but I have to go back or else the food I started this morning will go bad," she said as she started cleaning up.

Leah arched an eyebrow at her, "You left food on the stove for that long?" she asked perplexed, not doubting that Bella knew what she was doing, but still curious.

Bella nodded, "Well…I have a few pots of stock still on the stove, they haven't reduced quite yet, but I made several trays full of pot roast to feed everyone. They're always begging for food, and it's hard to keep up if I start cooking when they're already complaining of being hungry," she said quietly, obviously aware of Paul's gaze on her.

Jacob noticed that his eyes lingered on Bella's curves as she bent over to pick up a stray piece of her math homework. He desperately wanted to jump up and claw off his lips for the smug little quirk he could see. He wasn't sure if he could contain his desire to just leap and rip Paul's eyes from his head for the low little sparkle Jake saw in them. But he did. Jake took a calming breath and sat down to sulk.

Bella, apparently, noticed her _friend's_ depression, "Don't be so mopey, Jake," she said with a warm smile, his smile, "after all, it's not like we won't see one another again tomorrow, right?" she said with a giggle as she got ready to leave.

Jake felt warmth spreading through his chest when she looked at him, even as he felt cold chills running up and down his spine as Paul diverted his attention to him. Waiting. Watching.

* * *

"You did _**what**_?" Sam bellowed outside as the rest of the Pack got to eating the pot roast Bella had ladled out for them as soon as she had gotten home. However, immediately after seeing to the Pack's culinary needs, she had been swept off her feet and led outside. At which point her brother had decided to crack.

"I asked Charlie if it was OK if I could have my own place, he said it was fine as long as there was one available that didn't cost too much," Bella mumbled out, unwilling to further antagonize her brother. She had a feeling he already knew most of the details, or at least, Paul did, if he hadn't already shared them with Sam. There was something to consider. Paul. Helping her. Bella let out a mental snort at the idea before turning her attention back to her shaking brother, who was making an obvious attempt to reign in the werewolves' famous temper.

"Why? So you can be near…_**him**_ more often?" Sam growled the pronoun out as if it were contaminated with diseases. In his mind it probably was. Cooties, in particular, Bella thought to herself.

"No, Sam, I wouldn't do that to spite you. I know I haven't known you very long, but you're still my brother, and I love and respect you…even if I disagree with you," Bella said to her toes, unwilling to look Sam in the eye even as she said it. The sound of masticating wolves – a sound even Bella's pitiful human ears could detect – had stopped, so she knew the entire Pack was eavesdropping at this point.

"So you're not doing it to get away from me?" Sam asked, relieved, his posture relaxing.

"Well…" Bella started, unsure how to phrase this with everyone listening in. She felt more than saw Sam's posture stiffen, his brows scrunch, his muscles tense, his chest clench. Bella let out a sigh before continuing, "I…um…came back to the house, today, for…um…my…ah…book," Bella restarted haltingly, "and when I was in the house I heard you…" Bella let her voice trail off as she raised her eyes meaningfully to Sam's.

"Oh," was all he said as he looked to the side and blushed, "Did you…see…?" Sam muttered quietly. Bella nodded shamefully while her brother gave a slight wince, his face still red.

Sam sighed, "Did you tell…" he trailed off again, quite sure that the Pack and Emily didn't need to hear specifics. The more he and Bella could keep between the two of them, the better off they would be. This time, Bella graced him with a smile and shook her head.

Sam let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding as he escorted his sister to the door. Bella supposed she understood that. Sam, while he didn't love Leah the way he loved Emily, still had a place in his heart for her. He still cared, even if that caring had changed.

Bella walked straight into the kitchen, ignoring her brothers, by biology and association, making pigs of themselves at the table instead of wolves. She checked the two pots of beef bones she had set to simmer and reduce to stock, and found that they were fragrant enough for her to save up to use in the soup she had planned for tomorrow.

Bella opened the refrigerator and sighed, "Who ate a handful of the cookie dough?" she called out, knowing they'd hear her. The sound of chewing and laughing came to a halt, only to be replaced by Emily's tinkling giggle as she saw what Bella could imagine to be amusing expressions of dismay on all of their faces.

Bella just sighed, "Smack the one who did it for me, or no desert tonight," she called out again and was immediately gratified by the sound of harsh blows and a strangled yelp emanating from Embry.

Bella stored and labelled her beef stalk before rolling out and flattening the cookies she had preheated the oven for. Setting her confections in the oven for a few minutes, she used the spare time to chat with the Pack, ask them about their day, if they had any preferences for dinner next week, and to exercise a little patience or the only person who'd be getting her cookies would be the local wildlife, and most certainly not the carnivores.

Bella smiled as she heard the collective rumbles of pleasure the wolves let out as she brought the tray into the room. She stopped short of the table, however, as the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Emily said kindly, rising fluidly so that she could let the guests in. Only council members would visit Sam's house, to say nothing of the fact it was well past any normal human dinnertime. This had to be important.

"Mmm, I'd recognize the smell of those cookies anywhere," Billy said with a grin as Harry Clearwater wheeled him into the house. Bella hadn't attended any tribal meetings officially, but she often went over to the council hall with food in hand, knowing that the Pack would be unruly should their stomachs not be full.

"Billy!" Bella exclaimed with delight, already passing the tray in front of the two council members, "Take a few more," Bella urged with a smile, "Embry already had his share for the day," she said as they took a couple more of the two trays she had present.

"But Bella…" Embry whined, giving her the puppy eyes.

She merely rolled her eyes by way of response, "That'll teach you to eat my batter. If you get hungry, Emily and I always make sure there's something in the fridge. Eat out of there, _not_ my mixing bowl," she said with a sniff as she set down two trays of cookies, the remaining contents disappearing in an instant.

"But, there's another two trays in the oven if you want to help me clean the dishes tonight, Embry," she said with a smile as Embry huffed indignantly at being forced to work for his food.

Billy and Harry laughed at the paces the young girl was putting their protectors through before Sam spoke, his voice carrying mild concern, "Is there a specific reason you've visited us, Billy? I'm certain none of the council members would visit this late if the matter weren't urgent," he said calmly, already thinking about how and where he would need to deploy wolves if a threat was imminent.

Billy waved his hand dismissively while Harry chuckled around a mouth filled with Bella's shortbread cookie, "Everything's fine, Sam, we're here for Bella tonight," Billy said as Harry nudged his chair to face the young woman, "your father called," the sitting elder said, his tone wry.

Bella blushed and looked away, but was still attentive as Harry continued, doing his best to shape his words around Bella's pastry, "He said you wanted a place of your own to stay at. We think it's a great idea. Actually, Billy, Old Quil, and I were talking, and we think you'd fit in great at the old bakery by the forest. It's certainly big enough that the entire Pack can meet there if you want, and, well," Harry chuckled briefly before continuing, "I think we'd start holding tribal meetings there if we could get you to cook for us," Harry said with a guffaw.

Billy shook his head ruefully as he turned to face Sam, "Consider this an official Council Assignment. We want you to restore that old bakery so Bella can set up shop in it. We don't mind providing for the Pack, as there are obviously limitations to how much work you can do, but you should at least help out a little," Billy said disapprovingly.

"But Jared and I already have steady jobs," Sam said, his face marred with a frown.

Billy just shrugged as he began to tear into his own cookie, "Half the Pack isn't the whole Pack. And besides, Sam, your house isn't practical as a meeting place. The Pack is getting larger, eventually, your fridge won't fit any more," Billy said ruefully before he took another bite, "This way, the Pack can work to help offset the costs of its stomachs," he said, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the simple flavour of the shortbread.

"But…what about my rent…and the deed?" Bella asked hastily, unsure why she was given this responsibility.

Harry shrugged as Billy was still eating, "We've already heard the way you and Emily took charge of caring for the Pack's more mundane needs, Bella. Consider feeding and putting up with these hooligans payment enough for the house. I'll give you the deed later. We only ask that you have one of the spare rooms open, should we need to let one of the Pack members recover in privacy," Harry explained, easily, eyeing the empty tray of cookies mournfully.

"So...you want me to open a Bakery, have the Pack work there part time, host council meetings there, and keep a room open in case of emergency…how big _is_ this place?" Bella asked incredulously.

Billy shrugged, licking his fingers between words, "It's been occupied on and off over the years. Each tenant has expanded it whenever they've moved in…I think it's relatively large by now. At least as large as the diner in Forks," he said as he sucked crumbs off of his fingers, savouring Bella's baking.

Bella sighed and walked back into the kitchen, ready to grab the next set of trays out of the oven. She wanted a place to stay in, and she didn't want to be alone, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to run a business of all things. Had her dad put them up to this? He had always said she should open a bakery…

Sam and the rest of the Pack eagerly discussed the details with the two council members, obviously excited to be getting a new meeting spot. Bella was sure her brother and his fiancé were glad for the extra privacy, and she was doubly sure that the Pack would be happy to be meeting at a place that was expected to have food all the time.

Bella wondered if there was such a thing as an industrial strength fly swatter. She snorted as she closed the oven with her hip, bearing two cookie laden trays back the table. She'd just have to break out the Taser if any of her brothers decided to eat too much merchandise.

**Disclaimer**: The only thing I own is my brain.

**AN**: Sorry for how long it took me to update, but update I have. I'm going to use my summer break to the fullest, so something should be posted again soon. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, I know I didn't respond immediately, but I hope to change that now, rather than waiting until I post. And I do love reviews, no matter what's being said. Oh, I've come to understand that the "Game" is confusing people. It isn't that you need to find a quote to interpret. Just the one bellow this AN that starts off every chapter. This quote...well...I thought it rather appropriate. I hope you all enjoy the chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank You Very Much for Reading and Reviewing.


	6. Steps

AN: Hello, folks. I'm sorry it took me so long to update. Summer classes, and then the start of Fall Quarter, and then all of my work going up in smoke due to a dead jump drive, and life in general all compounded to beat me into the ground. But, here I am, and here I now present you with the next installment of A Single Hound. I would like to congratulate YankeeGirlNJ for winning the Game (remember, if you can properly link the following quote to the chapter [or link it in any way, really] you'll be able to pick next chapter's dream. I'll even send you the dream as soon as I finish writing it) and I hope that there will be a new winner this week! (Though I doubt anyone is still waiting and/or reading this fic =P) Anyway, onward to the story, and as ever always, Thank You For Reading and Reviewing =D

* * *

Nothing interferes with my concentration.  
You could put an orgy in my office and I wouldn't look up.  
Well, maybe once.  
– Isaac Asimov

* * *

He looked down into the vast churning maelstrom. It called to him, the vast boiling mass beckoned to him, hypnotized him, demanded his presence. He jumped.

A part of his mind, a part unconcerned with reality, told him he was going to die. He didn't think so, as he rushed to embrace the swirling darkness, he thought it would fill him, entwine him, consume him. But he knew it would not kill him.

In a blink of an eye that felt like years beyond his counting, he was met by the waves and set adrift in light. He looked up to see the vast blackness of the ocean swirl above him still, while around him drifted motes of incandescent shadow, swirling and undulating in an otherwise pristine existence.

A shadow stepped forward, his father. A smile, and then he too was but another wisp of darkness. However, among all the sparks of colourlessness shone a single point of light, brighter than the already shining landscape. It was her.

She smiled at him, her arms open wide; wider than the ocean had been, and warmer than he knew the sun's light to be, they beckoned him to wrap himself in their realm of infinite connection. Connection with her.

But she drifted past him. Drifted to touch a…thing. A wolf. It was brown…no…black…no…grey…it was…and that was all. It shifted as soon as his senses apprehended it. Always a wolf, yet not. Its eyes were every shade of green, yet every shade of brown.

But, what turned the landscape about him, with its drifting points of intensity, from a blissful white to a grotesque sanguine was that it was in her embrace.

He swam and floated and bobbed and dashed and ran towards her. He used every spec of thought he could muster to chase her. She did not move, yet floated to the surface faster than he could follow, no matter how much he willed himself to her side.

He rushed after her, into the uncompromising pit of darkness that was the surface, and leapt above the waves…and found himself standing in a sun dappled meadow, where she waited for him. Smiling for him.

But, as he took his first step towards her, she was wrenched into the shadows by gleaming teeth, the only indicator of her abduction the swish of a bushy tail.

Jake's eyes shot open. He felt his skin crawl with uncertainty. What had that been? What had he been dreaming?

He knew he had been dreaming of Bells – his Bells, always his Bells – because he always did. But he always remembered the dreams. Always.

But, this time, all he remembered was a wistful reminiscence of loneliness.

* * *

Bella and the Pack had spent almost a week renovating the bakery that Bella had decided to name the Bell Book and Bread, a funny play on words she thought fitting for anyone who was captured in the world of the supernatural, such as her. Most of the Pack didn't get the reference, or why it was subtly hilarious, but then, she hadn't really been expecting them to.

Sam, Jared and Paul had helped with most of the actual rebuilding of areas that had fallen into disrepair and roof work. There had also been a couple doors that had needed replacing, but the wolves had set to the work with an enthusiasm Bella knew sprung from the fact that they were in effect building themselves a new den. Embry had helped check the electrical and plumbing work. He wasn't necessarily a full-fledged electrician or plumber, but he certainly had quite a bit of expertise. That, and the fact he actually read instruction manuals, helped ensure her new store wouldn't fall apart from the inside out.

Jake had fixed up most of the little appliances that she had found for the store. Many of them were old cast offs or pieces and parts of various reservation kitchens that were no longer necessary or wanted. Jake ensured every piece worked smoothly and efficiently. He even helped with the kitchen sink.

The part of the whole Bakery Bella thought she enjoyed the most, however, was the fully functional brick oven that stood at the heart of her new kitchen. She still had conventional modern ovens and microwaves and whatnot, but none of the tenants before her had seemed to want to replace the old and functional brick oven, or even brick stove, that served as the centrepiece to the kitchen.

Bella wasn't entirely sure that she knew how to work either her not-so-new oven or her not-so-new stove, but she figured punishing the pack with chopping firewood for fuel would become common enough eventually. Bella had had Leah, who had a flare for art, as well as her brother Seth help her with the painting on the inside of the café. She had let the wolves go to town on the outside, getting buckets and buckets of a warm earthy brown paint for them to splatter the outside walls, and one another, liberally.

Leah, and Emily as well, much to Bella's surprise, had jointly designed the interior, however. Bella had wondered at the wisdom of the two of them being together, but it seemed Sam could not impinge upon the bond between the two girls, even if an offhand comment now and then seemed to cause stress, yet Bella saw that the two of them were sisters, and even if the Pack wasn't necessarily partial to Leah, that they would have to deal with that; they had proved their sisterhood with the amazing design scheme they had thought up for Bella's establishment, quickly catching onto the theme of the not so normal, though only Emily understood why it was such an inside joke. Emily and Leah's ideas were almost always perfect compliments with one another, but at the same time, completely unique and individual. It was as if their two personalities, so disparate and conflicted, meshed only with the two of them.

Bella had thought it strange that the two of them could almost act as if there were no Sam when they were together, but the more she had talked to the both of them in one another's presence, and the more she had asked them for help with Bell Book and Bread, the more she had found that they were true sisters. Bella had learned that there were some bonds that just don't break, and some bits of life that one just can't forget or be distracted from, no matter how much refuse or dirty laundry or pain is mixed into the equation. Some things just ring true.

The end product of their partnership had been a thing to behold. There had already been plenty of sturdy wooden furniture covered in dust protectors when Bella, Leah, Seth and Emily had first arrived the morning after Billy had informed Bella she would be setting up this establishment and given her the key. After a tense few moments, Leah had given Emily a look too complicated to merely be called either sad or forgiving, and the other woman had fallen into Leah's arms, tears of joy and sorrow and grief and shame spilling over her scars, both physical and emotional.

Seth and Bella had just exchanged a look and had elected to step outside in order to give the two a moment to reconcile properly. Bella enjoyed Seth's company. He had a unique combination of goofiness and ingenuity that reminded her of Jake, but felt somehow different. Whereas Jake shined up her life with warmth, Seth felt like he washed her worries away with a smile and a laugh at either or both of their expenses. She had had a feeling she'd be enjoying his company a great deal more, though she couldn't tell why.

Billy had wheeled himself up to the pair, asking them why they hadn't entered yet when Seth had taken it upon himself to explain the situation, as Billy was being wheeled around by his father, as he had been the night the Council had gifted her with the establishment. Harry had frowned as he had heard that Emily as Leah had made up but couldn't help but let a sigh out. He had been glad that the destruction Sam's imprinting had wrought on his little girl's heart hadn't extended to his daughter's relationship with one she considered a sister in spirit, if not entirely in blood.

Bella, Seth and the two Elders chatted amiably about Bella's plans for the shop before being interrupted by Emily and Leah, both of whom had already scouted the interior and had plans to share with Bella as to the decorating, as she had already told the both of them that they had full reign over decorating and whatnot. It just wasn't Bella's thing. Secretly, Bella had been hoping to get the two girls to reconcile, after Sam had admitted he had felt guilty about his role in their separation and estrangement. It was just another way Bella was trying to make it up to the Pack and La Push for her very real role in inflicting this fate on them all.

Bella was well aware of the fact that most of the Pack didn't really blame her in any significant way for their transformation. Sam had stated repeatedly to her that if it hadn't been the Cullens, it would have been some other vampire threat. The fact that the Quileute tribe had started to phase was in no way, shape and/or form her fault. She still thought it was.

But now, it was a week later, and most of the redecorating was done. Seth had been fascinated by the traditional carvings and mystic patterns that adorned most of the tables and chairs – each and every one of them unique in their own way – and had set about working them into his own leatherworking and carving. Harry boasted that his son was one of the most skilled artisans on the Reservation, and upon seeing his work, Bella agreed. He had carved her sign and her doorframe artfully with swirls upon swirls that all seemed to bend into one another and around one another, without crowding either edifice. Inside the actual shop, Seth had made a prototype chair to go along with the decent amount of sitting areas she already had.

Bella had insisted upon paying the boy for his help, but all he had wanted was a steady job. Bella had decided to give him a position as a waiter and assistant. Emily already had a role as her assistant cook, while Leah had taken over most managerial tasks, along with Bella. Bella thought that this was all going to turn out quite well. She had even gone over to Forks and bought a Taser for the Pack…just in case…

But still, it was the first day her shop was open…and it was a weekend…and she wasn't at all sure what was going to happen…and she-

"Bella, stop hyperventilating," Leah said with a smirk as she gave the white girl an affectionate roll of her eyes.

"But…" Bella stuttered out, not entirely sure why she was apprehensive, but apprehensive none the less. No, wait, she did know why she was apprehensive. The Council had hyped this place up to the point where the entire Reservation would come and judge her based on the standard of her cooking. This was going to be a disaster.

Emily shook her head, "Bella, if you're worried about what the others on the Res will think, don't. You're cooking and baking are fantastic, and I'll help run the shop on the weekdays with Jared, you don't have to worry about anything, I promise," Emily said as she shared a look with Leah. The two of them had started to include Bella in their rather unique sisterhood, after all, Bella was just too cute not to tease and play with.

Bella just shook her head, electing to say nothing, and that way save what little dignity she knew she had left. She busied herself about the kitchen for a moment more before the first group walked through the door. It was a group from school, thankfully.

"Hey Bella!" the foremost girl said. Her name was Elizabeth, if Bella remembered correctly. She was one of the "smarties" that Leah preferred not to associate with. She had some of the other AP students with her, namely her boyfriend Brogan and their friend Lawrence.

Lawrence was one of what Leah had started to call her fan club. He was a slim, almost effeminate, young man with shoulder length hair that only added to his femininity. Unfortunately for him, he was considered "cute" rather than handsome by the majority of the female populace at school. As Bella was the first girl to actually be kind rather than gush at first meeting him, he had formed an instant crush on the girl.

"So, what's on the menu?" Brogan asked with a dashing smile as he set his arms on the counter that served as a display case for the deserts that Bella had cooked up the day before.

Bella gestured up to the sign board above her, a joint project between Seth, Jacob and the Pack, "Those are all of our breakfast foods and deserts, if you're looking for something a bit more hearty, the menu's right here," Bella paused as she handed the three of them menus, "feel free to sit wherever you want," she said, doing her best to smile as brightly as possible.

Lawrence blushed as he took the menu and his friends giggled as they sat down, "Well, that's three down, the rest to go," Leah commented blandly as she drummed her fingers on the counter. She was bored.

Bella looked around at the mostly empty store. It was only…eight AM? Morning rushes didn't start this early, right?

Unfortunately for Leah, her boredom was cured about half an hour later, when they were inundated with customers. Leah, Seth and Emily all glided among the customers, taking orders and doing their best to facilitate various other base things like refilling drinks. Bella was working like mad in the kitchen, both modern ovens filled to the brim with various confections and the brick oven stuffed almost to the danger point.

She flitted over her thankfully large brick…no, clay, Bella reminded herself, baked clay stove. It had been a long night, getting used to the heating difference in the almost archaic stove type, but Bella found she liked it – especially as it allowed her to cook up several servings of both pancakes and crepes at once. Bella didn't have time to worry about petty things like when the Pack would get there, she was in her zone, she was cooking. For a lot of people, at that.

"I'm here, do you…need…wow…" Jacob's triumphant entrance was quickly cut off as he saw the teeming masses stuffed at Bella's well decorated tables (all covered with a clear plastic table covering so as to not damage anything).

Leah's head turned towards Jacob the minute she detected his entrance, and before the young man could protest, he was swept away, his hands stuffed with a pad, pen, and a server's tray tucked beneath his arm.

"You," Leah's eye's bore into Jacob's with what could only be called demonic furore, "take tables three through six," she almost growled, the fey fires of absolute insanity dancing in the depths of her very frenzied eyes.

"But…" Jacob's protest died in his throat as he contemplated the eyes that bore into his. Had Leah suddenly grown, or had he shrunk? And why did it feel as if he were about to burst into flame?

"Right away," he muttered, dashing towards the tables labelled three through six on the chart attached to the back of his tray.

"Hello, my name is Jacob and I'll be your server from now on, how may I help you?" he asked cordially, pumping out as much boyish charm as he could. He had a feeling this was going to be a long day.

About fifteen minutes later, Sam and the rest of the Pack entered, Embry absent as he was on patrol. Sam strode over to Bella, prepared to do his best to help out with the Bell Book and Bread.

"Sorry I'm late, there was…" he trailed off as he caught sight of a convivially smiling Jacob charming an older lady into waiting but a few minutes more for her order of flapjacks.

"Why is Jacob here?" he grumbled out, his brow furrowed with his displeasure. His protests died, however, as he took in his sister's state of appearance. Her hair, normally neatly tied up, was sticking out in all sorts of directions underneath a hair net she had donned in order to ensure the food was nothing less than clean. She had a frying pan in one hand, deftly flipping pancakes over and over again as she used her other hand to test a crepe with a spatula. Upon seeing her brother, she flipped said pancake onto a plate already stacked with them, hollering, "Table Five Ready!" as her hands blurred into motion. They added a touch of lemon zest here, a curled orange rind there, a dollop of crème and strawberry confiture here. She handed the finished product to Jacob, who shot a smug look at Sam before proceeding to take the order to the salivating old woman.

The rest of the Pack gathered behind their Alpha, Paul and Jared's features donning aspects of absolute horror. Her hand freed up from the flapjacks, Bella spared a moment to snatch the Taser from its resting place and turned to face her brother, forgetting to put her spatula down.

Armed with a spatula, covered in batter, fruit juice, and flour of every imaginable type, and wielding what Sam deduced was the Taser like a sword, Bella whirled on her brothers.

"Work…now…" she grumbled.

"But…" Jared started, unknowingly repeating a process that had already been done.

Bella's nostril's flared and the three werewolves could smell the rage and frustration rolling off of her, "One of you go relieve Emily so she can give me a hand," she muttered, not wanting to scare her customers, as the kitchen was in plain sight. She punctuated every word with a flourish and activation of her weapon, however, which caused it to crack ominously in the faces of the Pack.

They unanimously decided they would rather face a full coven of starving vampires, but if they didn't help…that meant no food. Almost as a body, they turned to see the saliva inducing dishes that Bella had been furiously working non-stop to pump out, the aromas alone were enough to set their stomachs grumbling. They would get food, at least…

"Um…" Sam started, not quite sure what to say.

"NOW, SAM!" Bella screamed/whispered, jabbing the Taser into her brother.

He yelped and leapt towards Emily, taking the tray, pad and pen from her and quickly asking what tables he needed to cover. Bella turned towards the other two Pack members. They needed no motivation to sprint to Leah and demand their assignments.

Sam trotted over after his brothers had gotten their tables, waiting stoically and dutifully at Leah's side for his own assignments, at Emily's request. Leah looked him up and down, bottling her emotions. Bella had added one other feature to the store…one she had suggested Leah use to her advantage.

"Table 10" Leah said with a devious smile, the first time she had smiled in her ex-boyfriend's presence since the breakup. Sam didn't twitch and immediately set off in the direction of the room that was labelled in its entirety as Table 10.

He stepped into a nightmare. They were everywhere, clawing and scratching and howling their fiendish delights as they tore about the room, sensing a possible end to their captivity. Their manic laughter and screeching abated only momentarily as they locked onto Sam, detecting in him a new source of dark amusement and jubilation.

Sam took one last look at the door labelled "Fun Food Room – No One Over 10 Allowed" and sighed before entering Hell.

* * *

Bella sighed in quiet contentment as Embry swept the floor of the Bell Book and Bread. She reclined in one of the more comfortable upholstered chairs that had come with the establishment before she and the Pack had moved in. Her contentment, however, was ruined as Sam and the rest of the Pack barged in and started clamouring for food, necessitating Bella heating up their dinner and starting on the emergency rations, which would almost certainly be necessary.

The Bell Book and Bread had been an unequivocal success. It had changed to more of a Starbucks setting after the initial morning rush had ended, with people just coming up to her and ordering whatever it was that they wanted to eat. She had been in the kitchen all day, starting with the morning rush and ending with the dinner rush, after which she had closed. Billy had come in just after closing time with Harry and Old Quil, who were they, after all, to turn away the council, so the three of them could speak in relative privacy with good food – just as they had told her they would. They had left her with a few notes to pass onto Sam, but they had also congratulated her on starting up what they all already considered an obvious success. Bella wasn't so sure. Harry, however, had given her a hug just before they left, thanking her for giving Leah something to put a smile on her face, and for helping Leah reconnect with Emily. He had said he hadn't seen his daughter so happy since Sam had broken her heart.

Now Bella was once again cooking up a storm, Emily at her side, readying herself for the Pack's ravenous appetites. Of course, the second the food was done, Fate, or whatever other force one could call it, decided Bella's infamous luck had run aground.

As Bella plated the food she had prepared for the Pack, Jacob and Quil walked in, both giving her a smile and putting an obvious effort into pretending Sam and his brothers didn't exist. The table, usually raucous with the sound of werewolves scarfing down their food, indignant at said food being stolen, and all around cheerful, was subjected to an unnatural hush as the two young men walked into Bella's establishment.

"Hey, Bells," Jacob called out with a smile, Quil sending a silent smirk and wink her way, causing the fair young woman to blush profusely.

"Jacob…you're early…" she started, unsure of what to say. She had invited Jacob and Quil over for desert to thank them for helping her with her very successful first day of business. They had all had plans to have it become a regular occurrence…but if Jacob and Quil were here that would mean that-

"Bella," Leah said flippantly as she walked in after the two boys. She, too, had elected to come to the little after-party Bella had set up to celebrate. She wasn't too sure why Bella's douche of a brother was still here, though.

Bella felt more than saw the minute tremble that shivered through the Pack at the appearance of three persona non grata. This wasn't going to stay very pretty for very long.

"Jake, Leah, Quil," Bella greeted over again, doing her best to put on a smile, as if it usually wasn't hard enough. She had to find a way to get them out, out, out of here before Sam decided to do something rash. She heard a chair shift from where the Pack had dragged out the giant table that Bella had stored in the basement. It was the only thing capable of holding all the food that the Pack regularly ingested, but it wasn't so useful for a diner/café/bibliotheca.

Then it struck her. She had a small little area upstairs that was entirely suitable for guests. Most of the upstairs area was quartered off from patrons, because it was more Bella's home than anything else. And besides, the downstairs area held up to around thirty people, and Bella already had a hard enough time keeping up with all of them. Her room and the spare room were joined by a small living room area that Jacob had put a formerly defunct TV in (and which the Pack had gladly added an X-Box 360 to…complete with Halo Reach).

"Why don't we head upstairs while Sam and-" Bella's invitation was cut off by her brother.

"I don't think that's the best idea, Bella. They should leave," Sam's low gravelly voice rumbled his displeasure at his sister covertly defying his authority. Again.

"You don't own her. And if I remember right, the council deeded this place to _her_ not to you and your sick little **cult**," Jacob spat out, his disposition turning from sunny upon seeing Bella's face to stormy at Sam's imprecations.

Leah just scoffed and joined Bella and Emily in the kitchen, leaning indolently against the island, watching the testosterone levels in the room rise like high tide. She severely hoped Sam would drown in it, but as she stole a glance at Bella, she deemed it more likely her friend would succumb to the crashing waves of manliness first.

"Jacob, Quil, why don't we-" Bella started again.

"Leave," Sam said to Jacob and Quil, ignoring his younger sister's attempts at diplomacy. They were unstable werewolves, and if their scent was anything to go by, they were going to phase soon. Very soon. Possibly tonight.

Bella, however, was heedless of the danger they posed to her, as usual, and continued on, much to her brother's aggravation, "step outside. I'll whip something up for the two of you once Sam and the others are done eating, but we can just chill for now," she said with a smile as she guided the two of them outside, Sam and the rest of the Pack fast on her heels. Sam would _not_ allow his newly discovered sister to become a snack for the impudent Jacob Black. Yes, he was going to be Alpha of the Pack…eventually. But that was in the future, and Sam was in command of the present, and he was in no way shape or form going to allow Jacob to harm his sister. Or seduce her. They were the same, really.

Sam moved to Bella's side faster than he should have probably been moving outside, but it was late, and he was more worried about his sister in any case, "Bella, I don't want you _near_ him," Sam growled out, distorting the word near into an animalistic snarl.

Bella just stared back into Sam's eyes defiantly, and opened her mouth to retort, but was cut off by Jacob's own snarl of rage. Which barely preceded his transformation into a werewolf, at which point, Quil freaked out, and also transformed into a wolf. With Leah watching.

Sam quite literally tossed Bella into the air, shouting "Embry!" as Jared leapt up to catch the now airborne young woman, who was in too much shock to scream bloody murder.

"Don't worry, I've got you," Jared whispered into Bella's ear as he caught her and landed lightly on his feet while Paul and Embry phased to help deal with Quil and Jacob. Of course, Bella immediately started to squirm and demand to be allowed to help the two new additions to the Pack.

"I have to help them! They'll trust me! Let me down! NOW!" Bella started screeching, at which point Leah walked outside to witness the fight between the five wolves.

"What. The. Hell…" she muttered to herself before Bella turned to her, shocked that she had come outside with them.

"Leah…I know this looks…bad…" Bella mumbled, not quite sure what to say.

"Bad…yeah…your boyfriend just FURSPLODED!" Leah screeched.

Emily put her hands on Leah's shoulders, guiding her cousin into the café, doing her best to avoid looking at the fight, "Leah…come inside for a moment, I'll explain…" she said, shooting Bella a plaintive look for aide before guiding Leah inside and upstairs to the common room.

Bella squirmed her way out of Jared's grasp and rushed towards the fighting wolves. She was close enough where she would, hopefully, be able to get their attention, but far enough away that she was, hopefully, out of immediate danger.

"Jacob!" she shouted, picking out the wolf tussling with her brother.

"Jacob Ephraim Black!" she shouted again, trudging towards them, throwing caution, and good sense, to the wind. Sam could have sworn his eyes bugged as he saw Bella bearing towards him and Jacob as they fought, and luckily, it was enough that Jacob registered who it was that Sam saw, and froze.

_What…?_ Jacob's anger cleared only long enough for Bella to grab a plank of wood that, to his estimation, looked almost as big as her (but in reality, was only half her size, and one of the left over planks from construction). To everyone's surprise, she managed to swing it. To everyone's further surprise, she actually hit Jacob with it.

"Jacob Black! I know very well that you and my brother do not get along, however, should you ever endanger my store or the work everyone put into it again, I will personally see to it that boiled cabbage is the only thing you'll be eating for the rest of your unnaturally long life!" she shouted, doing her best to keep her voice from cracking. Her hands hurt horribly from swinging the unwieldy plank, but hey, it seemed to have calmed the Pack down. Even Quil and Embry seemed to have stopped fighting, with Paul phased but pawing the ground nervously, obviously unhappy at the fact he hadn't had the opportunity to join in the rambunctious festivities.

Jacob ducked his head and let out a low whine, and then turned his head quizzically, obviously confused at the fact words refused to be formed around his new vocal cords and muzzle. He stared down at his paws and yelped once, shooting Bella a fearful glance, then swinging his gaze to Sam, then towards Quil and Embry, and then back to Bella, his eyes widening at each stopping point.

Bella let out a sigh before leaving the clearing, "I'll have a nice dinner ready for you and the rest of the Pack once Sam's done explaining things to you. And Sam," she said, turning towards the giant black wolf, who arched an eyebrow at her, "the food is going to get cold soon, and if you guys don't get in soon, Jared's probably going to-" she was cut off by the sound of the door swinging open and the sight of Jared rushing towards the table, followed by the sight of Paul dashing towards the door, phasing on the fly.

"Paul! You will put clothes on before you enter my shop!" she shouted as she dropped her now defunct makeshift weapon and covered her eyes, doing her best to run to the door without either tripping or seeing anything untoward.

* * *

Leah was startled out of her stupor by the sound of shouting downstairs.

"Bella! For fuck's sake open your eyes if you're going to use that!" Paul shouted, desperation tingeing his words, as Leah heard some corresponding crashing and a startled yelp.

"Not until I'm sure you're wearing _pants_. I have absolutely no desire to turn my café into…into…into Chippendales!" Leah was relatively sure that was the first time she had heard Bella screech like a harpy. She decided she rather liked the sound, even if the mental image of Paul without pants was disgusting. Even if he was a werewolf.

This was too much. Werewolves? Really? This couldn't-

Paul yelped again, "You nearly tased my _balls_," he said, his tone taking on a note of horror. Leah decided she'd better just listen in. The idea of Bella going around blindfolded, chasing a naked Paul with a Taser would be the best rumour to hit the school in a while.

"Well, if you put on _pants_ this wouldn't be a problem, would it?" Bella hissed. She obviously **really** liked pants.

Leah and Emily shook their heads in time as they heard Paul yelp again, followed by "MY ASS!" and Jared's booming laughter. Jared's laughter subsided as he told Bella that he was going to take Paul over to Sam's place so that they could bring all the spare cut outs over to her café.

"Good!" she shouted. Leah and Emily exchanged familiar looks as both of them headed down the stairs as the door slammed shut. They deemed it safe as safe could be, now.

"That sounded interesting," Leah smirked as she saw Bella's still beat red face. Bella just huffed indignantly, but Leah could see the spark of amusement in the other girl's eyes. She still couldn't believe the girl had dated a vampire. She wasn't sure if the girl had balls or was just plain crazy, but oh well, she seemed to be handling everything in general pretty well. Better than her, at any rate.

"I'm sorry about not telling you," Bella started immediately, the guilt shining through clearly and truly to everyone in the room.

Leah just waved it off, "Bella. Your brother is a manipulative asshole who's a slave to tribal voodoo…don't worry about it," she said. And she meant it. Bella couldn't control what Sam had done, neither could Emily, and it was clear that both young women were enslaved by association. They took care of the Pack. It was equally clear that they didn't expect anything of the sort from her, just that she help them out with the shop. Which Leah was perfectly content to do. It gave her a space of control, of ordered chaos, of peace. She could exercise her will and her personality in this shop and not feel bad or worried or even like a bitch. It was just a place for her to be her. No strings attached.

Bella just shook her head, mumbling under her breath. Leah guessed she was agreeing on the sly, but didn't want it in any sort of auditory range of any werewolf. She headed towards the kitchen, pulling out her mixing bowl and getting some more deserts ready while Emily got to work on more food, seeing as how Jared had scarfed all of it down while Bella chased Paul around the shop.

Leah took a deep breath before asking how she could help in the kitchen. Screw the supernatural crap. She was going to concentrate on her life and what she wanted, and nothing was going to interfere with that. Not werewolves, not vampires, not even if the Loch Ness monster suddenly took up residence in one of the reservation lakes.

* * *

Sam jolted at the sound of Bella's scream. Emily and Leah had long since gone home, but the wolves were still with the newly phased Jacob and Quil, attempting to get them to acclimate. Quil was having a bang up time, learning he could phase and shift into a giant wolf on demand. Jacob, however, was a bit more reluctant to accept his role in the Pack; especially the fact that Sam was Alpha, for now, and that Jacob would have to follow his orders, in particular, the orders that pertained to Bella.

However, as soon as they heard a loud thud from Bella's room, Jacob phased back to human and headed towards the Bell Book and Bread, only to be cut off by Sam's order, "Stop!"

Sam knew of Jacob's feelings for his sister, he had felt them through Jacob. Hell, he and Embry had nearly gagged at some of the fantasies that were playing through his head. Sam didn't care that Jacob had learned the knack of turning back into, and staying, human remarkably quickly. After he had seen those fantasies, he had resolved to do his best to keep Jacob Black as far away from his sister as was within the bounds of reason. Blood-lines be damned.

Sam quickly slipped into his cut-offs and bolted into the house and up the stairs, barging into Bella's room to find her lying insensate next to a book with scribbled nonsense in it, "Bella," he said gently as he attempted to shake her awake.

She bolted up immediately, her eyes flying open, chattering incessantly in Quileute, "I'm sorry," she said instantly, already trying to stand up on her own shaky legs. She said something in Quileute Sam didn't quite understand.

"Bella…please speak in English, I can't understand what you're saying," Sam said gently, not quite sure why his sister had passed out quite yet.

She frowned at him, "Of course I'm speaking in English," she said in flawless Quileute, "What else would I be speaking in? Greek?"

Sam's brow furrowed, "I'm glad you learned to speak Quileute, Bella, but please, start speaking in English," he said, his voice more serious.

"I…" she stopped, switching to English and shaking her head, "I…I'm sorry…I didn't even realize I was speaking in Quileute…I didn't even _know_ I **knew** Quileute," she said, shocked at herself.

"Bella…tell me what happened before I found you," Sam asked slowly as she sat down on her bed.

"Oh…I was…I was just…I found that journal," she said as she pointed to the book full of gibberish on the floor, "and it was in Latin…so I tried translating some of it, and then I passed out, I don't know why," Bella said shakily as she started to lay back down into bed.

Sam shook his head, "Wait…" he said, catching himself, "you know _Latin_? And now you know Quileute?" he arched a dubious eyebrow at his little sister.

She puffed up her cheeks and gave him a cute little pout, "Not all of us forget our foreign language classes, you know? And I've been trying with the Quileute…Leah and Emily have been helping…I guess…I guess I've just been picking it up better than we thought," she said absently, not entirely believe the words that were coming out of her mouth.

Sam had been bullying her into learning Quileute since she had come to live with them. She had originally started out with a horrible accent, but now, it sounded as if she were a natural born. Sam supposed it was to be expected from the sister of the acting Alpha, as well as the Pack caretaker. The Spirits were probably just using this as a way to show them their favour, strange book or no.

So, Sam put the strange book on Bella's bedside table and went back outside to tell Jacob and Quil to get some rest. They'd need it, after all, seeing as how he was going to start them up on their own patrols soon enough. All the better to get them away from his sister. She didn't need them interrupting her concentration on the Pack and the Bell Book and Bread.

* * *

Bella stirred lightly in her sleep. It was her first night in the Bell Book and Bread, and it wouldn't be her last, But something called to her. It…hurt…

She had to leave.

Sam had just left, and he would no doubt have someone watching. But she needed to go. She didn't know why. She just knew that she needed to go.

So she left.

She wandered out of the house, her head pounding, her feet aching. She was in pain. But…as she stepped towards the forest by the Bell Book and Bread, she found it hurt less. She walked towards less pain. She walked…and she walked…and she kept on walking…

The only way she could make herself block out the pain was to concentrate. She concentrated on where she was walking, she concentrated on how she was getting towards less pain, she concentrated on why she was doing this. So, steadily as the rain that beat down on Forks, Washington day in and day out, Bella put one foot before the other and walked on.

She let herself be guided by the pain until she reached a strange little clearing that appeared to be shinning slightly brighter than the rest of the forest. It was surrounded by a ring of particularly tall boles, and was partially bisected by a babbling crooked little brook that trailed off into a small pond in the direct centre of the almost perfect clearing. A large rectangular boulder sat next to the pond, almost as if it were a bench.

The pain was gone. She blinked a couple of times at the almost surreal landscape before she turned to trudge back home, her fatigue catching up with her. She was going to regret this in the morning, when the Pack began demanding food and she had to open the Bell Book and Bread.

She turned to see a pair of blood red eyes staring back at her. Bella's eyes darted about, searching out who the eyes belonged too. She was met with dreadlocks and skin caught between pale and dark. Laurnet.

"Hello, Isabella," he purred softly, sending a chill down her spine. For some odd reason, though, she didn't feel threatened. She felt safe in the clearing. Some part of her mind told her that she should be cowering in abject terror. A darker part of her mind told her that she should be embracing an end to her rather pointless existence and the waste of space that she was. But, despite all of that, she felt safe for the first time in a long time. She felt like she was where she belonged.

Bella didn't respond, she just stared back at Laurnet, almost bored.

Laurnet just chuckled as he shook his head, causing his hair to swing about him like blades of grass jostled by a slightly too affectionate breeze.

"Your lack of trepidation is commendable, Isabella. As an acknowledgment of your courage, I'll be sure to make your end painless as possible. It's more than Victoria would do for you," Laurnet said with a smile as he began to creep towards the moonlight that seemed to mark the boundary of the clearing.

"Wait," Bella said, causing Laurnet to pause momentarily, "I think I at least deserve to know why Victoria wants me dead. It's obvious the Cullens aren't here any longer, why would she want me? I'm a pitiful little human, after all." Bella let a touch of sarcasm seep into her words, causing Laurnet to chuckle.

"Why indeed?" He asked rhetorically, "She seems inclined to believe that killing you is the best way to avenge herself against your mate – excuse me, former mate – Edward…I'm very sorry Isabella, but you will die," Laurnet said with a shrug, not looking at all sorry. He looked hungry, and the closer he stepped towards the moonlight, the blacker his eyes got. Bella stood her ground.

He stepped into the moonlight and stopped to look down at his feet, frowning. He seemed unable to will himself into movement. However, as he turned his head back upwards, to look at Bella, the features of a semblance of flesh began to fade away. They didn't peel away, or gradually transform, they merely faded. Bella stared in astonishment as Laurnet faded away, to be gradually replaced by a gnarled, but beautiful, tree with glistening black bark that almost seemed to swim in itself. A moment later, the barren branches were covered with alabaster leaves that sparkled gently in the moonlight, an occasional red blossom – the same colour as Laurnet's former eyes – peeking out through the foliage.

"Well…that was anticlimactic…" Bella breathed as she stumbled to the stone bench to sat down, her nerves frayed. Despite the confidence that had filled her earlier, she was exhausted and on edge. She had nearly been killed. By a vampire. Why hadn't Sam and the others found Laurnet earlier? Were they alright? Had he hurt any of them?

A general feeling of negation filled her head. She paused to stare at her reflection in the pond in consternation. That hadn't been her thought…or at least, that was what she thought… She rubbed her temples in agitation with the palms of her hand, willing her building headache to leave her be. The water she was staring into was crystal clear. It was almost unnatural. Bella didn't think that any natural source of water could be so pure…so clean…

She was hit by the thought that it wasn't necessarily natural in the sense that nature alone had caused this formation. It was magical. Bella shook her head. That most _certainly_ hadn't been her thought.

Another impression hit her. A nebulous and ineffable amusement at her constant analysis and worry filled her mind. Bella shook her head, once again, in a feeble attempt to clear it. She looked around. The grass seemed to be…soft…so very soft…

The suggestion that she lay down and rest drifted through her mind. She was getting better at parsing out what was her and what was…she wasn't sure. She should be alarmed. She should be running screaming to the hills. She was going insane.

No, not really. She just thought she was. It was one of those by products of humanity, really. The grass looked really inviting, and she was terribly tired, after all…

"Fine," Bella said to no one in particular. She was met with a waft of pleasure and approval before she laid her head down on the soft grass that felt more like downy than plant life. And, as she drifted to sleep, she was almost certain that she saw the very distinct image of a pair of verdant emerald eyes staring at her. A pair of eyes that, she was certain, belonged to a wolf…was it brown? Or was it grey? It probably wasn't one of the pack, as it was too normal.

No, no that wolf was decidedly not normal, was the last impression that her mind allowed her to sense on a conscious level before she drifted off into the realm of dreams.


	7. Reality

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Um...hello again...this chapter is rife with a bunch of voodoo shit. Sorry, but this really is an info dump chappy. But to allay some of your fears and head of some probable commentary: No, I will not turn Bella into Super Woman. She is not going to be able to hurl typhoons at anyone.  
The "Great Spirit" character is just that. He is not a Marty Stu because, to be quite frank, he isn't human. He isn't a character that falls within the classical perception of human ideology. And he sure as all hell ain't me. If anyone's familiar with the Pagan/Wiccan idea of The Lord (not the Christian God) that's the closest analog I can come up with.  
Feel free to ask questions in reviews or in PMs. Also, the lack of italics for thoughts is intentional. Italics are only used for thoughts in the Pack mind to give some leeway for dialogue.  
Oh, the winners of the contest were Little Furry Cannibals, YankeeGirlNJ, and tunde-tre. Unfortunately, I couldn't fit dreamer number three into the fic. So you get the first two, and there will only be one winner for this chapter, as I have to make room for the dreamer I had to omit this chapter. First come first serve.  
I really am sorry this chapter took so long to get out, but I am a double major college student with other life priorities that demand time. I originally thought I'd do this during Winter Break, but a 14 month old sister is a lot to handle sometimes.  
Oh. I hate imprinting, by the way. So...yeah...just wanted to make that crystal clear. However, Jake will imprint. It has been asked again and again that Jake imprint, so he will. For those of you who understand I'm a sadistic bastard, I only request you also keep in mind that this is in point of fact a J/B fic. She will not end up with an OC. She will end up with someone. Bella will end up with Jake. Eventually. Promise. I just enjoy angst and long winding roads.  
That should complete my long and winding AN, so, I hope you enjoy the chapter, and I ask that you forgive any mistakes, because editing your own work (when sleep deprived because you just want to post the damn chappy already) is not an error free process.

Merry Assorted Non-Denominational Holidays. Happy New Year. Thank You for Reading and Reviewing =D

* * *

When you look at yourself from a universal standpoint,  
something inside always reminds or informs you that there are bigger and better things to worry about.  
– Albert Einstein

* * *

He was…floating? There was nothing around him, really. But he was standing. Sort of. That was a sensation he missed. He hadn't stood since the accident that had claimed the life of his wife. So many things taken from him: His wife. His pride. His son's freedom. His desire to take his son's place. Oh, how he would if he could. He knew his son wanted other things, bigger things, better things. He was right to want them. But Billy had long ago wanted the gift and honour that his son had so readily been given. He still did. The Spirits were cruel sometimes.

_Or just inept. They are human, after all._

He turned towards the voice. It was a wolf. Its fur shifted from white to brown to black to grey to sandy and to dozens of other colours before shifting back again. Its eyes, however, stayed the most verdant shade of green he had ever seen. He knelt before the Great Spirit.

He got the unshakable impression that the Spirit was rolling its eyes.

_Please. Rise. Or whatever it is that your human nobles say whenever you abase yourselves._

He couldn't help but smile at the Spirits words. It really didn't compute, or even care, about things on a human level. But that was to be expected. It wasn't human.

_This is a courtesy call. Things are going to change soon. Drastically. Your tribe has been too long without a true caretaker. Those wolves are adequate physical protectors, I suppose, but even they can only do so much._

His eyes widened. Who could possibly…

_You know exactly who_.

He cried for him to wait, to explain, but the moment he opened his mouth, he awoke in bed. He put his hands over his eyes and closed them again. He was, once again, powerless to help the people closest to him as they took the paths that had ever been denied him. And he hated himself for it.

* * *

She was smiling at him. They were in her kitchen. She was _hot_. He gave her his trademark panty dropping smirk that always made her blush. Only, this time, it really did drop her panties and she gave him a sultry smile with the blush. Sweet.

He knew he'd get her eventually. Leah had spouted all that bull to him about him not being "mature" or "intelligent" and crap. Yeah. Right. If the look on her face was anything to go bye, none of that stupid girly feely crap mattered.

She held out both of her hands, both holding something. A plate of calamari in her left hand. Food. And an octopus in the other. Kinky. Then she turned into a baby. Not so kinky. Back to Babe. Back to Baby. Back to Babe. Back to Baby. Couldn't his dream make up its fucking mind already?

Quil awoke to the sound of howls before he could get to the good part. Damn. That was probably his royal anal retentiveness calling a meeting for some reason. He sighed before getting out of bed, already naked, and trotting outside to phase. Oh wait. His dream…The Pack mind…and both Embry and Sam were going to be there…and Jake…_shit_.

* * *

Bella yawned lazily and rolled to her side. She fell quite sharply into a pool of chilly water, at which point, she let an ear splitting shriek escape her lungs as she burst from the cistern. She leapt up into a sitting position as she desperately scrambled for some purchase on the pool's edge with which to lever herself out of her rude awakening. She was eventually rewarded with success.

As she hauled herself up out of the frigid waters and began to wrap her arms about herself in a vain attempt to keep herself warm – why was she in a forest clearing? – she noticed that she was not, in fact, wet. The memories of the previous night came flowing back to her in a furious tide. The pain. Laurnet. The thoughts that she wasn't thinking. That strange wolf.

The wolf wasn't that strange, now was it?

Bella turned and saw the wolf – apparently it had decided on a dusky grey for its fur colour, as it wasn't oscillating between spectrums any longer – pad towards her from the edge of the clearing. She cleared her throat and began to speak, in order to better understand which thoughts were hers and which were the wolf's, "I don't know. You're…I'm not sure what it is you're doing, but I don't think that's normal," she said as she looked him, she was sure it was a him, up and down. Shouldn't she be freaking out now?

The wolf lay down before her, its bushy tail swishing languidly as it appraised her just as she appraised it. It was quite simple, really, if Bella only thought about it. It was sharing its mind with her. Well, it was sharing its mind with her insomuch as she, as a human, could understand and process it. It didn't use words, after all.

"No, I'm quite sure you wouldn't…do you have a name?" Bella asked in exasperation as she sat down next to the wolf. The thought, purely Bella, that she should really be running for the hills at this point crossed her mind before the wolf interrupted. No, she really shouldn't be running for the hills. After all, Bella had seen much worse. And no, the wolf didn't need a name. Why would it?

"I guess I'll just call you Fido, then," Bella muttered in exasperation. She was tired of all of this. Why couldn't things just be slightly normal? A flicker of amusement hit her. It calmed her, for some reason. She got the distinct impression that this was not how things were normally done. But that was alright. She was there. She wasn't leaving. Bella wasn't sure what frightened her more, the fact that she couldn't decide if the thought that she wasn't leaving was hers, or if she couldn't actually find in herself the desire to leave.

"Is this form of communication more appreciable?" Fido said. Bella wasn't quite sure how it managed to form words through its muzzle. Presumably, the general hand wave that accompanied most of the supernatural was responsible. These are not the droids you are looking for. This wolf is actually talking. Same difference.

"I can speak without moving my mouth, if you find that more comfortable," Fido said, its jaw remaining tightly shut.

Bella sighed, "No, you can move your mouth." She said, "I think it's possibly even creepier when you don't move your mouth. Now then, could you please explain what's going on before I devolve into a state of shock?"

Fido chuckled, his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth, "As you will. You are, quite simply, in a similar position to your half-brothers and the rest of their shape shifting pack." He said bluntly, "You will serve as a protector. However, rather than a protector of only humans, you also serve as a protector of the forests, its surrounding territories, and the life that inhabits it. Your responsibility is to, at its core, serve me." Bella wondered where that logical leap had come from. Protector equals servitor? Say what?

Bella closed her eyes and reached up to pinch the brow of her nose with her fingers, already feeling a headache creeping into her skull, "I'm dreaming. This is a hallucination. That has to be it. I'm simply exhausted from the stress from the Bell Book and Bread and I'm dreaming. Yes. That has to be it," she repeated to herself. This couldn't be happening.

Fido arched a brow at her, further supporting Bella's theory as wolves weren't supposed to have brows, "I expected such a response. You're people abandoned the practice after the last magic maker retired. I believe she left an instruction manual, as well as her cook book, in order to help others find the path. Sadly, none did. Until you picked her cook book up, that is," he said easily, obviously undisturbed by Bella's blatant lack of conviction and even more blatant lack of belief.

Bella shook her head. She pinched herself. It hurt. This couldn't be happening. Fido snorted and nipped at her hand, causing Bella to let out a yip of protest as blood started to trickle down her hand from the cut.

"What was that for?" she spluttered.

"It was to further convince you that this is not a dream, and also to provide you a subject for your first lesson in what your species prefers to call magic," Fido said.

Bella held up her non injured hand palm out, gesturing for the talking wolf – was she really going to just accept all of this so easily? – to hold its horses. "OK…sure…let's assume I'm going along with all of this talk of magic, which I've had about five seconds to acclimate to," she said, and could help a brief thought of all the vampires and werewolves that crowded her life, "and start on a much simpler subject. Who. The. Hell. Are. You?" she enunciated each word slowly. She wasn't really sure if she should be insulting it, or giving it lip, but at this point, she was still cold, cranky, and her hand hurt. She would do as she pleased, thank you very much.

Fido's tongue lolled out again, but this time Bella felt Fido's humour brush over her like a warm breeze that smelled of sunshine and tasted of light, "Humans have given me many names over the eons. How familiar are you with the concepts of spirits?" he answered with a question.

Bella sighed and turned to face Fido fully, crossing her legs and giving the wolf her full attention, "I understand that animists believe they inhabit everything. And so do Shinto practitioners," Bella ground out. She really wasn't in the mood for school right now. And she had to get back to the Bell Book and Bread soon. She had no idea what time it was, but it had to be close to opening time.

"You will find time flows differently here. As I wish it, and eventually, as you wish it. But, moving on, you are essentially correct. Spirits, or the entities humans refer to as spiritual beings, are concentrations of sentient energy that inhabit natural forces. When humans evolved, energies of human conception began to coalesce into similar beings: a Spirit of Valour, Spirit of Truth, Spirit of Lies, Spirit of Monotheism, et cetera."

Bella took a moment to digest the concept. She wanted to balk at it. This should sound completely ridiculous to a girl raised in a Christian state. That being said, Bella was most certainly a "buffet Christian," picking and choosing the parts she wanted to believe in. There was also the fact that she lived in a world already jam packed with werewolves and vampires. What was to say other stuff wasn't real? In point of fact, how ludicrous would that be, for only a handful of ancient myths to turn out to be true while the others stayed false?

Bella shook her head, "How much of this are you putting in my mind?" she ground out, unsettled at being unable to distinguish her mind from his. She had been able to a minute ago. Why the change?

Fido's grin was nothing short of sly. Maybe he should appear as a fox? "Our minds our meshed, Bella. I am neither imposing my will upon you nor am I forcing you to think of anything. But to move right along. Despite the fact that many spirits were born into this world, so to say, after humanity rose, there were many spirits that abided on this world long before man. Indeed, there were spirits that abided in this universe long before this world. I am something of that nature," Fido continued, unruffled by Bella's glare.

"You haven't answered a single one of my questions." Bella said mildly, willing herself to remain calm. Shouting at the spiritual being would get her nowhere. No. She would remain calm. She would remain collected. Breathe in through the nose, out through the mouth. She _really_ wanted to throttle the damn thing. She sifted the out of character thoughts aside. "And please," she continued as if Fido weren't screwing with her insides, "stop doing that." She asked as politely as she could, given the circumstances.

Fido smirked again – Bella still wasn't totally giving up on the dream theory. Really? Smirking wolves? – before answering, "If you want an answer, you have already given me a name: Fido. If you want older names, they range from the Great Spirit and Cernuous, to Ammon-Ra and Coyote. I am the spirit of what humans tend to think of as masculine energy. Vitality. Virility. I represent the life force that helps all things stay in motion," he explained easily.

Bella blinked slowly. She sorted out some of those names. She recognized the Great Spirit from Sam's incessant indoctrination. Cernuous was some Celtic woodland deity that had somehow been suborned into that stupid game World of Warcraft that some of the geeks at school talked about – "Please don't mention that infernal game, don't even think of it," Fido muttered darkly – Ammon-Ra was the hybridized Sun/Supreme deity of the Egyptians. And Coyote was the Native American trickster deity. Or at least, he was for the Native American tribes were coyotes had been common.

Fido dipped his head, indicating Bella was indeed correct. "So, you're a god of some sort, then?" she tried to clarify. She really shouldn't be buying this. What was wrong with her? Any sane human being would have started frothing at the mouth, or would be having some sort of religious break down. Was that why weird stuff was attracted to her? Was it because her brain was built wrong?

"I prefer not to be identified with so limiting term as 'god.' In point of fact, I find Gods of Worship quite ridiculous, and rather imbalanced," Fido mentioned offhandedly, trotting up to Bella and laying his now brown head into her lap.

"So, most 'gods,'" she put the word in air quotes with her fingers, "are insane then?"

"How shall I say…rather, the human conception of insanity is insufficient in scope to contain the concept of such a grossly problematic mental irregularity such as the ones suffered by the so called pantheons of a majority of human cultures," Fido said. He wasn't arrogant, or even posturing, Bella realized. To him, none of this really mattered. She supposed it made sense. She didn't really care what an ant worshiped. And, at least according to human tradition, human gods were to here as she was to the ants. She was currently conversing with a being that was to gods what the gods were to ants.

Why hadn't she been blasted into smithereens yet? Shouldn't she have just spontaneously combusted after talking to Fido?

"Your thoughts, while quite quaint," Bella bristled at the word, "are immaterial. My presence will not incinerate you, dematerialize you, discombobulate you, or turn you into a fish-squirrel. I think, now that we've answered your most immediate questions, that the lessons proper should begin, don't you?"

With that, Fido's fur changed colour to a dusky black and he began to trudge into the forest, his tail swinging expectantly. Bella grumbled and followed. She supposed she was obligated to follow whatever strange orders the thing gave her. She really didn't want a super powerful spirit making her life hell.

And so, Bella spent innumerable hours with Fido, learning. The first thing he taught her was how to use the energy in and around her to heal the small cut he'd given her. From there, she'd moved on, with surprising speed, to larger organisms. She and Fido had run into a surprising amount of injured animals. Bears with their paws stuck in traps. Deer with wounded knees. Sparrows with broken wings. The list went on and on.

However as the day wore on, or should have been wearing on, Bella noticed that the amount of light hadn't changed. Indeed, it seemed as if time hadn't been moving forward for either her or Fido at all.

"It isn't moving forward," Fido mentioned when the thoughts had begun to interfere with her concentration while healing a deer recovering from a gunshot wound. "It has not yet changed from the time of about seven o'clock in the morning. It is in this way that I can teach you without these lessons interfering in your daily patterns of activity. Knit the flesh together, Bella, don't push it together," he mentioned offhandedly.

Bella's brow furrowed. She was getting tired. She had gone through an Eagle, several sparrows, what felt like a heard of deer and elk, a mother bear and her baby, and had helped birth a littler of mountain lions. Bella had no idea what amount of time it should have taken, but it seemed like it should be a lot. She felt like she had been working for weeks. For all she knew, she had been.

"You will also notice that your energy depletes at a slower pace if you remember to heal organisms with their own reserves of energy: fat and muscle. Also, remember to draw more magical energy from the earth and forest around you, not from yourself. You'll burn up far too quickly that way," Fido continued lecturing, responding to Bella's thoughts. She'd been working for what felt like weeks, and she was burning herself out? That was a long burn out timer. Regardless, though, she used her mind to reach out for what Fido had explained would be the energy of the earth surrounding her. A small tiny jewel of it responded to her will, and with that, the deer's internal organs were fixed.

She didn't even truly know where all of this was coming from. Ever since she had stepped into the clearing, a new side of her mind had awoken. It was as if she had grown an extra pair of eyes, ears and hands. She could see the flow of things around her, hear its pulse, and feel its flow. Nothing actually looked different. Nor did anything feel different. It simply felt as if she were seeing a new depth to colour. Sounds felt different now, and sensations came with new meaning. All and all, it wasn't an unpleasant sensation.

"One more healing, Bella, and then I think we'll end the lessons for today," Fido said, nudging her with his snout. Bella sighed, already used to Fido's unrepentant attitude. Her eyes were already opened, but she felt like she was opening them again. She saw a pair of ravens at the base of a large Douglass fir tree.

She walked in the direction she knew they would be in and then got to work, mending their broken wings. When she'd finished a half hour later – did healing really have to take so long? – the two birds looked at her with startlingly intelligent eyes before taking wing and vanishing into the air.

"A good start," Fido said, "but I'd recommend against attempting healing anything complicated. The majority of the wounds you healed today were comparatively minor injuries, and were fairly strait forward. Anything more complicated than a broken bone, for now, and you risk yourself unnecessarily," he finished.

"So does that mean I can _finally_ leave and sleep?" Bella asked, exhausted. She really had no idea why she was doing this. She had, without any argument whatsoever, followed a talking wolf into the woods and had started to learn magic from it. If anything needed healing in the forest, it was probably her brain. Clearly, it was defective.

"Don't feel badly, Bella. You are compelled to do as I wish. To phrase such in human terms, you want to do what I want you to do. You will happily do almost anything I wish. Very simple," Fido said, letting out a long yawn.

Bella's brow furrowed, "So…I…," she paused to think this through, "I just do whatever it is you want, with a smile, and I don't even know why it makes me happy?" she asked incredulously.

Fido nodded. If Bella hadn't already been sitting down, she thought she might have sat down rather hard. She was, essentially, a magical slave to some super spirit that was teaching her for some unfathomable reason that only it could comprehend. She was well and truly screwed.

"Oh, I may have forgotten to mention something," Bella highly doubted that Fido was capable of forgetting _anything_, "You are also bound to the spiritual essences of your antecessors. What your tribe calls the Spirits, the ones who made a compact with me long ago in exchange for the ability to turn into wolves. I believe they're the ones that came up with that ridiculous imprinting notion, though. Humans really do spend far too much attention to bloodlines," Fido said, bored.

Bella set her head between her knees, trying to process everything the obviously sadistic spirit was mentioning, "Do you know what the term emotional whiplash means?" she asked hoarsely. If she was interpreting Fido correctly, and she probably was since he was influencing her thoughts, she was not only the tribe's connection to the world of nature spirits; she was also their connection to their ancestral spirits. She was some sort of wacky spirit medium.

"I understand the concept well enough," Fido said, staring at her with wide green eyes that looked perfectly unnatural in his lupine body, "though for obvious reasons I've never actually experienced such a thing," he delivered the statement in the same tone he delivered almost everything else. Bored.

"Shall we now continue with the lessons?"

Bella decided that it was perfectly aright for her to begin freaking out. She wondered if Sam would be doing the same.

* * *

Sam was freaking out.

He didn't know _how_ none of the wolves had noticed that Bella had simply up and left her new home. He didn't know _why_ none of them had thought to inform him of finding Bella's scent leading into the woods in the early morning. Perhaps Bella had done more damage with that tazer than she thought?

_Calm down, Sammy, she's probably just collecting berries in the woods or some other girly shit like that…Do you guys think it would be cool if we went all Red Riding Hood on her hot ass?_ Quil's idiotic thoughts permeated the pack mind. This thought was quickly followed up by more of Quil's erotic fantasies concerning Sam's sister wearing nothing but a red hood and a disgustingly creative twist on the term "devoured by wolves."

However, before Sam could become sufficiently enraged to brace Quil for such an egregious lack of common sense and decency, Embry happily obliged. _For Spirits' sake, Quil! Stop it with the motherfucking mental porn! After that dream last night I don't even want you _looking _at my sister anymore! Fucking pedo!_

Quil's nonchalance and lack of regard washed over the Pack right up until Jacob took a snap at Quil's tail, at which point Quil retaliated, turning the meeting into a wrestling match. Sam was loathe (not really) to use Alpha commands on the two idiots, but it was the only way to get the meeting back into order. It took a few minutes for Jared to show up as well, despite the fact it was already eight and Bella had been missing for just about four hours.

_Look, Big Bro, _Paul's thoughts practically oozed snark, _I'm sure Little-Miss-Taze-A-Lot is just fine. She can take care of herself, stop tripping balls and just let us all go back to bed._

_And what about the scent of the Cold One, Paul? We're still obligated to ensure that the threat is dealt with and that no harm comes to the tribe. In point of fact, it could very well be that Bella is in the clutches of said Cold One _**AT THIS VERY MOMENT**_. _Sam was doing his best to contain his rage, but his worry for his sister was beginning to wear at his substantial fuse.

Jacob's thoughts immediately turned towards how he should be the one to go after the scent, not Jared, so that he could rescue Bella. After all, showing up to rescue her would probably lead to-

_Finish that thought, Jacob Black, and I'll see to it that you stay at least ten feet from my sister for the rest of your unnaturally long and furry life._ Sam seethed. He didn't have the patience to deal with Jacob's prepubescent infatuation at the moment. Jacob, after all, had _not_ imprinted on his sister, just as Sam had known he wouldn't.

_Hey, I think Bella's rubbing off on him. He's thinking with big words now…_

_Shut Up, Quil!_ The degree of synchronization of the Pack's thoughts was almost creepy.

Jared finally joined them, leaving Sam only enough time to dig two foot deep furrows into the ground with his frustrated pacing.

_I checked all around the house in human form. I didn't find any trace of Bella. But I didn't find any leech either. I'm pretty sure it was only in that one spot that Paul found._

_But that doesn't make any sense. The scent just dead ends at a clearing. It's like it vanishes. _Embry immediately countered.

The Pack had already investigated the woods as thoroughly as possible, given the fact it was daylight. None of them, however, could phase near the Bell Book and Bread seeing as how people were starting to stop by in anticipation of its opening. If Bella were any later, Emily would be forced to-

Sam's cell phone started ringing, Emily's ringtone jarring the entire Pack out of their speculations as to Bella's fate and that of the leech. Sam quickly phased and picked up, worrying for the safety of his imprint, now, as well as that of his sister.

"Is everything alright? Have you been attacked? Do you know where Bella is?" Sam's torrent of questions was met by Emily's soft giggle.

"Everything's fine, Sam. I'm with Bella now, at the Bell Book and Bread." Sam's relief was instantaneous, "She says that everything's fine, you may want to wait before you come, though seeing as-" he didn't wait for Emily to finish, softly cutting off his girlfriend and imprint.

"It's alright Emily, we're not all that far anyway, I'm sure you and Bella will need the help to open," he said as he signalled to the Pack that they needed to get moving.

"Sam, really, I don't think it's-" Emily tried again.

"Nonsense," Sam's rejoinder was instantaneous, "of course we want to help you. See you in a bit, love you," Sam smiled at Emily's desire to make things easier on the Pack. She and Bella were so kind hearted, most of the time, but this was one of the ways the Pack could give back to the ladies who made their lives run as smoothly as possible.

Emily let out a tolerant and resigned sigh, "See you soon, love you too, and don't say I didn't warn you."

* * *

"Nice to meet you, my name is Fi-" the strange man who'd greeted Sam at the door was cut off by Bella.

"This is Rex," she said tersely. Sam's sister was in a superbly foul mood. Foul enough that even the infatuated unimprinted Jacob Black and libidinous sex-starved Quil kept their distance. Sam wasn't sure whether to be pleased at the fact his sister was repelling them or worried if this strange "Rex" character was the cause of his sister's distress.

"So, Rex, who exactly are you? I don't think I've ever seen you around here before," Sam said cautiously. Jacob was staring at Rex intently, rage born of jealousy at the way the stranger hung around Bella already making him shake slightly, while Quil simply looked jealous. Jared and Paul and been conscripted by Emily to haul ingredients from the fridges in the outdoor cellar into the house to be placed into the fridges.

"I so did not know we had a basement!" Paul gushed as he came back up the stairs, eagerly exchanging ideas with Jared as to what they could do with the previously unknown space.

Rex smiled at their banter before answering Sam's question, "I'm from a tribe in Northern California. I came up here with a business proposition for Billy Black, as I had heard that he was a wise and level headed chief, I thought he would be up for some trade and would be willing to give a young man a few pointers at the job," he said as he leaned against the counter that Bella was already busy working at.

Sam studied Rex as he spoke. He was a bit young to be a chief, as the young man could be no older than twenty. While Rex was certainly not as bulky as any of the Pack, he stood at roughly six feet and was lean but well-muscled as opposed to hulking and ripped. That was not to say he was not well defined, he looked something like a swimmer who had devoted a great deal of time to lifting weights. The thing that made him suspicious, Sam decided, was not his mellifluous voice or shoulder length pleasantly unruly black hair, it was his eyes. They were a very verdant, very intimidating, shade of green. And they had a sort of sparkle in them that put Sam in mind of a child with a good prank at the ready.

Sam smiled disarmingly, "I hope that the rest of us can be of help to you as well." He said cordially, "We do our best to get by with what we have, and as Bella is proving to you right now, I think we're very good at it."

Rex turned to gaze at Bella, who lifted her head up to meet his stare. They shared some sort of silent communication that instantly put Sam on edge before the newcomer turned back to Sam, "Ah yes, Izzy has been very…helpful," he placed a gentle emphasis on the word that got the attention of everyone in the room, causing all the clamour of preparation – save for Bella's steady hands – to calm, to say nothing about the use of what felt like an intimate nickname, "with just about everything. I am rather sorry that Billy called her over so early in the morning, but what can I say? I got in late," he said as he leaned back to admire Bella's handiwork. Bella stoically ignored him.

"I need to open soon," Bella said into the quiet hush of conversation that followed, shooting Sam, and the other Pack members by association, a meaningful look.

Sam nodded, "Quil, Jacob, I want you two on patrol. You two don't have enough control yet to actively help Bella out with the preparations," he said as Leah unlocked the door and let Seth and herself into the shop. Bella and Emily switched positions, Emily going to the mixing bowl while Bella took a short break and began drinking some ice water.

Leah stole a glance at Rex before walking behind the counter to help Emily sort out ingredients and get dishes ready, "Who's the piece of eye candy drooling over Bella?"

"Her fiancé." Rex said with an insouciant smile.

Bella's sip of water immediately vacated her body via her nose. Jake and Quil started to shake, and had to be immediately escorted out of the premises by Embry, who was also shaking. Sam was deadly silent. Emily had stopped working. Leah arched an eyebrow. Seth scrunched his brow in discontent. Jared and Paul had taken several cautious steps away from their Alpha.

"…what?" Bella croaked out.

Rex blinked at her innocently, "Beg your pardon, prospective fiancé. I mentioned to Billy that I was looking for a suitable wife. As you happen to be the daughter of a primary warrior bloodline, an astonishingly good cook, intelligent, competent, and beautiful, I figured an arranged marriage with you would be a no-brainer. Did I forget to tell you, Izzy?"

"…yes…" Bella whispered, resting her head on the table. Why? Why was he doing this to her? Really? Was this _really_ necessary?

"She's a half-breed," Sam spat out with literal animal ferocity. He, and everyone else in the room, knew he didn't care one iota about the fact that Bella wasn't a full blooded Quileute. It was a vainly anaemic hope that Rex would care, given Bella's complexion, but the wolf in him decided to nurse it, violently if possible, anyway. Paul and Jared were content to cower in a corner.

"Really, I hadn't noticed," Rex said, his voice and tone completely clear of any trace of sarcasm, "and besides," he continued unrepentantly, completely ignoring Sam's now blatant hostility, "if we hold on to silly old racist ideals like that, how are we to progress into the modern world as a people?" he asked, his voice dripping with false cheer.

"Sam," Emily interrupted her imprint before he could say something that would make the situation worse, "we need more flower. Bring some up from the cellar. There's no rush," she said in a tone of voice that, in no uncertain terms, expressed her desire for him to take some time to cool off.

Sam stormed out the door.

Leah looked hard at Rex, who just smiled back innocently, as if nothing at all untoward had just happened. "I like this one," she said to Bella suddenly, "keep him around, if only to annoy Sam," she said, a malevolent glint coming into her eye.

"Leah," Emily chided lightly, not looking up from her work.

Leah proceeded to snort and roll her eyes, "Fine fine. At least keep him so tall dark and cutesy makes a move," she mumbled so everyone could hear, quickly getting back to her inventory of what still needed to be brought in to the shop proper.

Rex arched an eyebrow at Bella, who glared at him. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, cleared her mind, and then once again opened her eyes and fixed Rex with a cyclamate sweet smile, "I'll meet you after I'm done with the shop to keep showing you around…_**hunnybunchikens**_," both Leah and Emily cringed as they heard the diabetes inducing sweetness that suffused the word. It was clear that Bella had already gotten to know Rex very well during their allegedly brief sojourn around the Rez.

Rex flashed his teeth at Bella and lifted two fingers to his brown in mock salute before walking gracefully out the door.

"Does this mean Bella's not free to date?" Seth asked from where he was taking chairs down from tables.

* * *

After a thoroughly busy day, Bella huffed out a dissatisfied breath as she finished plating all the food for the Pack, who had once again taken to teasing her. All mention of Rex had been banned, unofficially. The one time Paul had dared to try mentioning it, he had been met with a glare from Sam and a sparkly smile from Bella that usually only meant very bad things. Now, though, it was an hour after closing, Billy was coming over to visit, and there was absolutely no sign of Rex. Everyone was happy.

"Yu_**p**_," Paul said, popping the p, "this food is _**p**_erfect," again popping the p.

"I have to agree with _**P**_aul," Jared said with a grin, joining in on the fun, "_**p**_ositively _**p**_erfect."

"Hey, Bella!" Quil called out, giving the others a sly wink, "Can you _**p**_repare some _**p-p-p-p-p**_ork for us?" he asked, popping each of the Ps he'd stuttered like Porky Pig.

Bella put everyone's food in front of them, "Pop another pugnaciously putrid P prone platitude and I'm positive I'll provide you with nothing but PEAS for a painstakingly prolonged period," she said, smiling.

"Damn, I think she won that one," Paul muttered morosely.

Sam smiled at the banter. It was nice to see that she got along with everyone. The only person he had concerns with was Jacob, as the young werewolf was still gunning for his sister. He didn't care about Quil, as the idiotic youth probably only liked Bella because she was attractive and interacted with the Pack. Paul only really "liked" Bella to mess with Jacob. And besides, Bella likely wouldn't give him the time of day, even if Paul tried. Jacob, however… Bella had demonstrated a soft spot for Jacob, and she didn't want her doting on the love-struck werewolf only to have her heart broken, in the end. Still, it was nice to see her interact with the Pack in such a jovial manner.

Everyone's jovial manner came crashing to the floor when Billy was wheeled in by Rex.

"Good evening, Bella," Billy said, a strained smile on his face.

"I've come to pick you up for our date, Izzy," Rex said, a sultry smile teasing the corner of his lips. The wolves remained seated through an effort of collective willpower.

Bella placed her forehead against her palm before speaking, slowly, "I thought we were meeting tomorrow," she enunciated slowly. Leah drank in the wolves discomfort with visible mirth and humour. It would be a lie to say she was still rooting for Jacob. She honestly didn't know what to make of the young man any longer, now that imprinting was a factor. It was supposed to be rare, though, so she did her best not to think much of it. But still, she had to admit Rex had a certain panache about him that was endearing. And he and Bella obviously had a connection, which was why Jacob looked like his hackles were rising. And Sam looked like he wanted to pull out the wolf and murder the poor bastard. Leah's pseudo-grin widened.

Billy coughed discreetly, "Sorry to pull you away, Bella," he said tactfully, "but could you do the honour of escorting Rex to the…ah…accommodations we've made for him?"

"I really would prefer to stay here with Izzy. There is a spare room here, is there not?" Rex asked, his smirk deepening at the corners. Billy closed his eyes and sighed, Bella blanched, and Jake, Sam and Embry turned a distinctive shade of green.

Bella marched to the door, grabbing Rex's hand as she went, "I'll see him to his place, Billy. I'm sure Emily will get everything sorted for you," she said as she hauled him out the door. He waved at everyone as he left, Bella tugging him all the way.

She started marching towards the woods, "I thought keeping me for the equivalent of a month would be enough for you," she said in reference to the time she had spent with Rex/Fido that hadn't actually passed for anyone else.

"It was enough to at least teach you some of the basics," he said with a smile, "but I admit to finding a desire to…what's the human phrase? Pop their hot air balloons? Let some steam out of them?" Rex said as he gripped Bella's hand more tightly. It was only then that she realized she was still holding his hand, which she tried to yank away, but couldn't. She sighed, and let it stand. She knew that Fido/Rex didn't actually have feelings for her or anything. He was simply going through the motions. He had expressed a desire to see what it felt like to be an enamoured human. He had also expressed a desire to cause mischief. He had also shown a definitive enjoyment for watching her squirm. Bella wouldn't be surprised if he was also responsible behind the myths of the god "Loki." He already had a trickster rep through Coyote

"I am, actually…or at least, I am mostly," he said with a smile as they trudged deeper into the forest.

Bella ignored the bait, "Was it really necessary to antagonize them all like that?" she asked candidly. She had grown used to Fido's idiosyncrasies, if they could even be called that, but she knew her brother and his Pack had no such tolerance.

"As I said, Isabella, the mortals that have inherited the gifts I freely gave to your people require a lesson in humility. They see themselves as privileged sometimes, and cursed at others. But, universally, they see themselves as different from human. That is not the case," he glanced askance at Bella, his green eyes piercing her all the way to her soul, "you would do well to remember that lesson as well, Isabella," he said calmly. If their month in the forest had taught her anything, it was that Fido was not human and that she was.

He had pushed her to exhaustion so many times, dragging her to injured animals, forcing her to cause plants to grow from nothing. She wasn't all that good at anything, quite yet, but Fido had told her that she was getting better. And it wasn't like she had anything to compare herself to. She was, at the very least, a semi-competent healer, or so Fido said. She couldn't tackle much beyond bonesetting and repairing holes in organs, but she could do that, at the very least. It no longer took her an hour to fix the bones of anything larger than a bird or squirrel, either.

She found using her abilities that connected with the Quileute ancestors much easier, however. This was probably because they were human, or at least, had been human. She understood the magical theory, or at least hoped she did, behind imprinting now, and Fido had given her enough of an education to be reasonably sure she could prevent or cause one at will. She had blatantly refused to go back to the normal flow of things before she'd learned that. She wanted to be sure she could prevent any other unfortunate imprints. Her brothers didn't deserve that. And, in a tiny portion of her mind, Bella knew that she would be able to bear it if Jake imprinted on someone else. Rex frowned.

"Then we will part ways for today, Isabella, and I will wish you a very happy day at school tomorrow…I am sure it will be," he paused and gave her a look Bella could only describe as playful, "eventful."

Bella sighed and slumped down into the grass of the forest, taking in the smell and feel of it.

"Bella?" she heard a familiar voice call out. She turned to face the speaker and smile.

"I think you'd better come back, now. Sam's friends are all starting to cause a ruckus," Seth said sheepishly as he held out a hand for her to grab and pull herself up with. She wasn't worried if Seth had overheard anything. After all, Fido would never allow it. She let her gaze linger on Seth's innocent face for a moment before accepting his grip and following him back to the Bell Book and Bread. He didn't let go. Bella frowned.

Fido wouldn't have…

Would he?

* * *

"Bella, I'll take care of everything. Sam has agreed to help out as well, so you don't have to worry about a thing," Emily said as she pushed Bella towards her monster of a truck so the young girl could go to school.

"But I thought Sam had his own job…" Bella trailed off, knowing full well that Sam's construction business wasn't exactly booming.

Emily fixed Bella with a compelling look, "It's good for Sam not to be fretting over that old thing anymore. I think he's happy to be helping out your business, since his is in the doldrums. Don't worry about it, Bella, we'll be fine. You already cooked up a bunch of batter and cakes and stock for us to use until you get back. Don't worry about it, I'll see you at…oh, hello, Rex," Emily said, taken aback as Rex appeared to pop out of nowhere. Though, knowing Rex, that was entirely probable.

Bella turned to glare at Rex, "What, exactly, are you doing here so early?" her tired aggravation seemed to seep into her voice. She really couldn't deal with a mischievous super powerful entity at the moment. Not that that had every stopped Rex from toying with her. She could still scarcely believe that he had spent a month with her in the forest, in the guise of a wolf, while mere hours had passed outside. She better understood, now, why forests were considered mysterious and often timeless places. If Fido/Rex really could do that whenever he wanted…the implications for her future really weren't looking at all bright.

"Why, dearest Izzy, I'm here to escort you to school, of course. Isn't it a suitor's job to do such things?" he asked with a pleasant smile. Bella cringed and Emily looked at the both of them askance.

"I don't recall every saying 'yes' to you in any sense of the word," Bella muttered before she gave Emily her parting regards and trudged towards the truck, Rex appearing in the passenger seat faster than should have been humanly possible.

"You really shouldn't be moving like that in public," Bella muttered half-heartedly as she drove towards school.

"Nonsense. Human beings are quite simple to deceive. They see what they wish to see, nothing more. I'm quite certain your entire 'Pack,'" he put the word in air quotes, "has already not only bought my story, but is currently holding a pool to determine whether or not you will eventually succumb to my ineffable charms," he said, throwing her a sly wink.

Bella rolled her eyes, "You're impossible, you know that? Is it really your mission to make my life miserable? I thought you were supposed to teach me, not torture me!"

Rex beamed a wide smile, narrowing his eyes slightly in amusement, "The two _aren't_ mutually exclusive, my dear."

Bella let out a growl of frustration before a horrible thought occurred to her, "You…you are _not_ coming to school with me," she demanded. She would not have her…her…she lacked a suitable frame of reference to place Rex/Fido, but whatever he/it was to her, that entity was _not_ going anywhere **near** her school.

Rex grinned. Bella didn't think it was a malicious grin. Or, rather, she really hoped it wasn't a malicious grin, "As you wish, Izzy dear, I shan't go anywhere near your school. But, be careful what you wish for," he said giving her one more, in Bella's mind absolutely diabolical, wink. The next moment, Bella was alone in her truck.

Bella really really really wished the male species had never come into existence in the first place. It obviously only existed to make her life hell.

* * *

Seth, Jared, and Paul came to sit with Bella at lunch after her morning classes ended. Bella missed Jacob and Quil, but she hadn't had much time to talk to them since they had phased, beyond the Pack feedings. Sam had forbidden them any human interaction, including her and Emily, until they had their tempers in grasp. She missed them at school, but now that Jared was attending regularly again, she figured she could hang out with him and Paul more. And Seth, the little smarty had skipped a grade and was a freshmen when he should only technically be in eighth grade. The only problem with that arrangement, however, was the fact that Seth was not yet informed about the Pack. Sam had agreed to allow Leah into their little fold for multifarious reasons, the primary reason being, though, that they couldn't help that she already knew. Seth remained an ignorant. He was not to be told unless he found out under his own power.

"Are you sure you don't want to sit with the rest of us?" Leah asked as she stopped by the Pack's table, "A lot of the upper classmen would like to 'meet' you, if you know what I mean," she drawled, a smirk teasing the corner of her lips.

The edges of Bella's lips turned upwards, "I'm fine at the Pack table," she said. "If any of them want to come talk to me, they're welcome to join us." Bella sat down with the three boys, waving goodbye to Leah who sauntered over to the "popular" kid table. Paul, Jared, Seth and Bella made small talk as Lunch wore on, reminding Bella why she loved her life, now, instead of just lived it. She felt at home in that space that she had learned was hers alone. Joking with Jared, teasing Paul, flirting with Seth. They were facets of an everyday life that had become a thread in the tapestry that now composed her life. She wouldn't trade it for the world.

Bella felt a twinge at the back of her neck. She turned towards the "smart kid" table. Something felt weird. Kim and Lawrence were talking. That wasn't weird. What was weird was the fact that Bella could see a small glowing red thread winding around Kim. It vibrated with a very specific intensity. Bella turned to Jared, who was busily engaged in the act of protecting his food from a voracious Paul, and examined him more closely. He could see the same red cord. Paul's cord burned an iridescent shade of amber. Seth's cord was shone a fiery shade of cobalt. The colours of the other people in the cafeteria were wide and varied, but none were as bright as the three boys at the table with her. But, that was just the problem. No two cords were supposed to be coloured the same. Jared's and Kim's were.

Bella frowned. From what Fido had explained to her, this was the explanation behind imprinting. These "cords" were little strings of fate. Or at least, they were bits of Fate that humans and spirits with abilities like could control and interact with. The fact that Jared's and Kim's were coloured the same meant that they were compatible on some level beyond mere common sense. Fido had explained that this was what the Spirits of the Quileute Ancestors used to forge imprints. They matched colours. Or at least, they got as close as they could.

Bella racked her brain. Kim, according to the school rumour mill, harboured a crush on Jared. Jared at this point was shamelessly unattached. Bella wondered if she had the right to so drastically alter their lives like that. Was it right of her to do something like forge an imprint between the two of them? It was obvious that the Spirits would get to it, sooner or later. But should Bella allow it? That was the question.

Then again, imprinting was essentially a free ticket to happiness for a couple. In theory, at any rate. Bella doubted it would ever be so simple. But, this was the perfect opportunity for her to test out her powers. All she had to do was reach out and connect them. It was simple, and it would make the both of them happy. The question was not, did she have the right to change peoples' lives. The question was, did she have the right to obstruct their happiness?

Bella frowned. She wasn't sure if this was another plot of Fido/Rex's. She couldn't tell if her thoughts were her own at the moment. But, regardless of the source of the intention, Bella did wish, for a brief moment for the couple to achieve true happiness.

The first thing that Fido had taught Bella was that Magic is really very simple. The utilization of magic can occur through several conduits. Language was the one that humanity had relied on since it had discovered speech. But Magic was really something quite simple. It was a wish. A simple desire. That's all that Magic needed. It's what separated magic from Magic.

And so, with the simple wish for Jared and Kim to reach happiness together, even for a brief indeterminate moment, the two were irrevocably connected through imprinting. And Bella could see it. She could see the red cord wind its way in the space between the two bodies, connecting them.

"Yo, Miss-Taze-A-Lot, whatcha zoning out for?" Paul managed to mumble out from between ten chicken nuggets.

Bella jolted back to reality, "Oh…nothing, I was just wondering what I wanted to cook for dinner tonight," Bella said distractedly.

Jared snorted, "As long as it's not chicken again, I'm good," he said with a grin aimed at Paul, as his friend stuffed more chicken into his mouth.

"Wha?" was all the other werewolf questioned.

Bella smiled as the bantering continued, and was startled again when she felt a tap on her arm, "Are you alright?" Seth asked her, his eyes hazy with concern.

Bella's smile widened with warmth, "Of course, why would you ask?"

Seth gave her a smile in return, "Oh, it's just you seem a bit distracted, is all. I was just worried your girlish constitution might have finally given out under all the stress," he said with a smirk.

Bella slapped him in the arm with a giggle. Seth was fun to be around, and if she couldn't have Jake near her, Seth was certainly no chore to spend time with in the stead of her sun. She enjoyed moonlight just as much as sunlight, after all.

But there was now the problem of how to deal with getting Jared and Kim to actually _look_ at one another.

Oh, but that'll be taken care of quite easily.

Bella jolted at the completely foreign thoughts in her mind. She blanched slightly. Fido was up to no good.

Seth frowned again, and was about to ask what was wrong when a loud wet "Whump" echoed on the table in front of them, followed by a flopping noise.

Squirming on the Pack table, directly in front of Bella, was a trout – a very alive trout. It looked to weigh about six or seven pounds, and was currently gasping for water as it convulsed on the table. Paul's mouth hung open, spilling partially masticated fried chicken out of his maw, as he stared at the live fish. The cafeteria had been shocked into silence at the sound of the fish flopping around when the fish dropped. The silence was broken by a loud, "Caw."

Bella, and the rest of the student body, looked up to see an eagle perched up in the rafters. As Bella stared at the animal, she realized it was the eagle she had healed "yesterday." The bird swooped down, and landed in front of Bella, opening its wings and beating them against the open air, looking at Bella with something akin to the desire to be praised.

The bird had given her the fish as a thank you. Everyone was staring at her.

"Um…thanks?" she said.

The eagle let out another caw before it took to the air and started to fly towards the open windows. The cafeteria immediately bursted into sound as the student body started to crowd around the Pack table, questioning Bella and poking at the now failing trout. In the tumult and commotion, Bella noticed that Kim and Jared caught one another's gaze.

She'd deal with the fallout _after_ she contrived an explanation for the eagle's present.

* * *

Bella sat with Emily, Leah and Kim in the upstairs portion of the Bell Book and Bread, all the customers already having departed for home due to the fact the time was well after closing hours. The only wolf present was a nervous Jared as the three girls explained the situation to Kim as best they could.

Originally, Sam had wanted to be the one to fill in Jared's imprint on how things went down with the Pack. Bella had overridden her brother with all the force of a wrecking ball. The two had gotten into it, as they usually did, but Bella had eventually won out with the argument that Kim would become an integral portion of the "Wolf Girls" and therefore would need to understand things from their perspective, not the perspective of a group of rowdy testosterone laden hooligans who liked to run around half naked.

Bella refilled Kim's cup of tea as the four girls ignored Jared's existence, with the exception of Kim, as she sat on her crush's lap. Jared had been petrified into silence, as every time he opened his mouth, Bella glared at him.

"So…you don't really need me to do anything?" Kim asked, again. She had been shocked enough to find the myths that she had learned since birth, and had generally dismissed since childhood, to be true. But she was even more shocked to find out that some of the other students at school, and the Bell Book and Candle, were involved. Leah, Bella and Kim all belonged to different cliques. And, while Kim knew of the other two, she didn't know them very well at all. Leah associated with the "popular" kids, Bella associated with the "smart" kids, and Kim associated with the rest of the student body who didn't fit into either category. Kim wasn't really complaining, though. She found she liked both girls, both were strong women in their own way, and didn't appear to really think that much of cliques, despite the fact they were firmly ensconced in them.

But Kim was quickly learning that the two girls had worries that extended beyond the realm of high school social politics, "Not if you don't want to," Bella said with a reassuring smile as she rested a hand on Kim's knee. "I would like some help with the store, if you're willing to give it, but beyond that we just wanted to make sure you understood what you would be getting into. And why Jared had suddenly fallen head over heels for you," Bella said as she leaned back into her seat.

Emily smiled and continued, "Sam, and some of the other wolves, will probably make a big deal of the fact that you and Jared have imprinted, but don't think too much of it. The imprint is…" Emily trailed off as she glanced at Leah.

Leah just rolled her eyes and picked up where her cousin had left off, "To put it simply, Kim, you're a part of the club now, whether you like it or not. Sure, the two domestic goddesses," she waved a hand at Emily and Bella, "are too nice to tell you to your face that they don't really need a hand in the kitchen. But I still think it would be nice if you helped contribute. Yeah, being an imprint and all that magical shit is nice. You fulfil your wolf, blah blah blah, mysticy magicy voodoo, yay. But that doesn't change the fact that your new boy toy," the couple blushed profusely, "eats like a fucking pig."

Kim squirmed in Jared's lap, making the wolf uncomfortable for reasons other than Leah's sharp tongue, "I'll be happy to help. I mean…I'm not exactly the best cook, or organizer, or anything, but I'm sure I can think of something…" she trailed off, feeling a bit inadequate. Bella, Leah and Emily, while all welcoming in their own way, were all certainly masters of their trade. Emily and Bella were, as Leah had quite accurately put it, goddesses of the kitchen. Leah, while not a top quality chef, had been praised by Bella as the brains behind the everyday operations of the Bell Book and Bread. Kim simply didn't know where she could contribute without looking like a failure.

Bella shot a look at Leah before filling in Kim's worried silence, "Don't worry, Kim. Leah's initial cooking attempts nearly burned down the house, but she's a decent cook now," she was interrupted by Leah's "Damn strait" before continuing, "and to put it bluntly, there's simply more work than the three of us can handle. And we can always use a new friend," she said as Emily and Leah made encouraging comments.

Bella gave Jared a glance indicating he could open his big mouth and start whispering sweet nothings into his imprint's ear again, "Look, sweety," he said, "I'm just happy you're here with me. I'm sure the rest of the Pack'll be glad to have you around too. Just be here, for me, please," he asked, giving her the puppy dog eyes that the Pack had learned from Embry as the only effective weapon against Bella's wrath. The Pack had yet to discover a tactic against Leah.

Kim melted into Jared's arms, content that her long time crush had not only started looking at her, but had confessed his undying love for her. She wasn't exactly sure what to do with that type of devotion, but it couldn't be a bad thing.

"Hello the house," a smooth voice resounded up the stairs.

"Up here, Rex," Bella said as she let out a long-winded sigh. She really didn't know what to do with him. That stupid stunt he'd pulled with the eagle had caused the whole school to bustle with rumours. It wasn't odd for birds to occasionally become trapped in the school buildings. But they didn't exactly drop lunch off for the students. Bella prayed – perhaps to Fido, perhaps not – the eagle wouldn't start dropping off her lunch regularly. She wouldn't know how to explain that away.

"Rex?" Kim asked, her brow furrowed in what Jared thought was the cutest expression of all time, "Is he another member of the Pack?"

Emily hesitated and Leah scoffed, "Not…exactly…"

"Oh, you mean that band of wolf warriors that I'm not supposed to know about? No, I don't 'fursplode,'" he put the word in air quotes, Bella never should have told him about that, "like your boyfriend, Emily's boyfriend, or the rest of the La Push Gang," he said with a warm smile as he ascended the stairs. Emily and Jared turned shocked looks of betrayal on Bella, who just buried her head in her hands.

Really? What was he going to do next? Force her to dance the Remigold naked in front of the Pack?

"His tribe has their own wolf protectors," Bella sighed out from between her palms, praying that Rex would corroborate the story. "He only found out our tribe also has them recently."

Emily frowned, "He told you this?"

"Only after I'd already deduced your tribe also had them," Rex said as he plopped down on the loveseat next to Bella, leaving scant centimetres between them despite the fact that there was plenty of space. "Bella is a very loyal caretaker of the Pack. She really is the best wife candidate I've ever seen."

Kim just turned inquisitive eyes towards Jared who mouthed, "Later."

"I see this is the newest addition to your happy family," Rex continued, ignoring Kim's discomfort. "Imprinting is commonly conceived of as the completion of the human soul," he said.

"Rex," Bella hissed out in a warning, noting Leah's and Emily's discomfort.

"What, my dear? It's true, the imprint is the bond 'fate,'" as he said the word his smile deepened almost maliciously, "has drawn between you in order to strengthen not only the tribe, but to enrich your lives and the lives of those around you. You should be honoured," he continued, ignoring Bella's enraged glare, Leah's blank stare, and Emily's ashamed downtrodden gaze. Kim just looked around wildly, not sure what to make of anything at all.

"Rex, why don't we go outside to talk while the Pack comes in and Emily and the rest get their food plated?" Bella practically growled. Rex tilted his head to the side, his eyes narrowed with amusement as he gave a slight nod of his head in acquiescence.

Bella marched down the stairs and out the door, informing the Pack that the "girl talk" was over and they could eat now.

"Sweet, we're starving," Quil said with a shit eating grin.

"No kidding, what exactly did you explain to her? The tribe…what the fuck? How the hell did you get in there?" Paul exclaimed as he saw Rex exit behind Bella.

"I used the back door," Rex said nonchalantly.

The Pack bustled through the doors, eager for food, "There's a back door?" Embry asked, confused, as he and the rest of his brothers shoved their way in, Sam remaining outside.

"Bella," he groused, arching an eyebrow at his sister.

"I'll be in in a minute," she said, waving her hand at the door. Sam reluctantly entered.

Rex and Bella walked for a few minutes before Bella turned on her companion, rage in her eyes, "What was that for?" she asked, furious.

Rex smiled, unperturbed by his vassal's rage, "I'm simply changing the rules of the game, Bella. Nothing more, nothing less. In this way, I may more intimately observe the reactions of your Pack, as well as test how you care for them," he said as he leaned against a tree.

"Yes, but do you really need to make our lives any harder? Just getting through the day is enough work as it is without you adding to the complication of it," she said, almost ready to fly into a rage.

"Peace, Izzy," Rex rumbled, his eyes glowing. "This is simply the first of many trials. Do not forget yourself," he said, his voice no longer amused. "I do as I will because it is what must be done. I am not good. I am not evil. I am not a being of order or chaos. I am not human, Isabella Swan, and you would do well to remember that."

Bella looked away, not frightened by Rex, but certainly feeling chastised, "I just…this is so much coming at me all at once…and now that Sam is keeping Jake away from me I…" Bella stopped, unwilling to continue.

Rex tilted his head, then nodded and waved a hand. A pair of ravens, the same ravens Bella remembered healing yesterday, appeared and perched on her shoulders, "Do not despair, Isabella. These will help you in your task. One will keep an eye on the Pack for you, the other will remain with you so that you will always know what your charges are up to," he said. Bella nodded, sure that this was just another lesson, somehow. She had worried all day at school what her boys had been up to, at least, now, she had a way to make sure they were safe. She doubted Laurnet had been alone. He had mentioned Victoria, after all, and she didn't know how to mention the attack to Sam without-

"You are not to mention the attack to your brother or the Pack," Rex interrupted, "I would not have them interfere with your…training tools. The Pack is not yet mature enough to deal with such things. You are," he said.

Bella sighed, and nodded. One of the ravens whispered in her ear that it would be alright. No harm would come to anyone if they could help it. Bella looked a bit shocked.

Rex chuckled, "Don't be so surprised, Isabella. Ravens are birds of power. Their aid, and the aid of the other animals of the forest, such as the eagle this afternoon, are not given to you because I am your patron. They aid you because you aid them. Help the forest, and the forest will help you. Give and take. This is the nature of things," Rex said. The moment he finished his sentence, he was Fido instead of Rex, his fur a sandy brown.

"And do not worry about Jacob Black any further," Fido said, his eyes burning.

Bella frowned, "Why? His control should be good enough in another day or so for him to talk to me on a regular basis," she argued, no longer cowed by the spirit.

Fido tilted his head and then shook it, "Do not concern yourself with Jacob Black. You have larger concerns at the moment. We will resume your lessons tomorrow." Fido vanished.

Bella scrunched her brow in thought. Why was everyone so obstinate about her staying away from Jake? Sam's worries were irrelevant now, not that she was allowed to tell him that they were. Fido had made very clear yesterday that none of the Pack were to know anything about her abilities if she could help it. She hadn't even been able to think of telling any of them.

But, for some reason, she couldn't help but want to talk to Jake again, to be near him, to see his smile, hear his laugh, and feel his warm arm slung around her. There was something inexplicably right about him being near her, and she didn't care if Sam and Fido disapproved, she'd have that sensation again. Jake had looked so lost the past couple days, trapped in a world he had barely had time to understand, let alone acclimate to. She wouldn't leave him alone in that.

Bella felt sad as she realized that, in the excitement of everything, she hadn't been able to properly help Jake come to terms with his new life. She resolved to do better. Fido be damned.

"Bella?" Seth's voice called out.

Seth had come to collect her. Again.

She frowned.

What was Fido up to…?


	8. Death

Disclaimer: Not mine

AN: Ok. Spring Break is over. I've managed to get this chapter out, and I hope you all enjoy it. Not much info dumping, but a whole lot of shenanigans and craziness abounds. And, again, this _is_ a Jacob/Bella fic. So don't shoot me, I promise, the best prizes are those that are worked for. As Bella will soon discover =)  
As always, thank you for Reading and Reviewing =D

* * *

Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori. It is sweet and honorable to die for one's country.  
- Latin phrase, English translation

* * *

He was awhirl in the darkness. It was everywhere. It was nowhere. Haunting visions of a father and family he – could never possess – had always desired – should have been loved by – flitted just out of reach. He grabbed at them with his hands, callused from rubbing up against the cold brittle edges of frustration and loneliness. His fingers twined about the dark omnipresent nothingness.

But he felt a warm presence bathe his back, a familiar presence. He turned around to see his half-sister smile at him brightly. He embraced her as his kin, his love, his family.

But she was cold. He looked at her again to see her smile frozen on a cadaver, drained of her lifeblood. Dead.

His hands were covered in viscous red fluid.

He looked down.

Dark red sloshed around his feet.

He shook his sister.

The red rose to his lap at his knees.

He cried her name.

It gently swirled about his chest.

He begged her to say something.

It submerged his head.

* * *

Embry woke with a start in the extra room of the Bell Book and Bread that had been put aside for Pack use. The fact that Bella's shop was nearby the forest allowed for the Pack to rest there whenever they desired either a snack or a nap. In Embry's case he had desired a visit to his sister, who had promptly ordered him upstairs and to bed upon seeing his eyes, bloodshot with exhaustion.

Sam had tried to get some of the members of the Pack to drop out of school in order to devote more time to patrols, the protection of the land, and the maintenance of their bodies. He was of the opinion that, though they had yet to actually encounter a vampire, it was best to maintain the discipline necessary to meet a wandering triad (Bella had helpfully supplied that most human drinking covens rarely exceeded three members) at any time.

As soon as the suggestion had left Sam's lips, however, Bella had sweetly mentioned that she'd be offering incentives for school. Those who got As would be rewarded with an avalanche of food. Those who got Bs would get a bucket load – this was probably literal – of pastries. Cs would be rewarded with a singular cookie. Ds would be met with dog food. Fs would be met with epic fail extra-strength Kimchi. Until they got a C.

Bella left the consequences of not actually obtaining grades unsaid. Sam's suggestion that some of the members of the Pack drop out was ignored. The tradeoff was that Bella occasionally crossed her usual moral boundaries and, on occasion, actually did the Pack's collective homework for them. No one had the courage to ask where Bella found the time.

Embry stretched and slid on one of the many cutoffs that Bella supplied in the cabinet of drawers – Bella had stocked up on clothes after discovering her brothers and their Pack mates slept in the buff the hard way. As he tossed the pair he'd discarded when he fell asleep into the laundry bin, he wondered at the power dynamic in the Pack.

Bella wasn't an imprint. Technically, she held no place in the tribe hierarchy at all. And yet, she wielded an enormous amount of power over the Pack by dint of her status as caretaker. She'd also managed to dragoon Leah into a similar position, over the protests of her elder brother, the Alpha.

Embry couldn't help but be concerned for his sister, however. What they did was dangerous, and she was constantly exposing herself to them. Not only was there the danger she could end up like Emily, she would be a target for the vampires, should they ever discover the Pack. To make matters worse, she lacked the empathic bond that allowed both the Imprint and the Imprinted knowledge of the physical and emotional health of their partner.

Embry dismissed the thoughts as he carried the laundry bin downstairs, outside, and into the basement. It was full of cut offs, and knowing his sister's clumsy streak, attempting to drag it down herself would likely end in more bruises and broken bones than the Pack was liable to handle without phasing.

Embry jolted upon hearing Bella's scream emanating from her room. It also brought Sam out of the woods, Jacob behind him, as they were supposed to finish their patrols. Sam and Jacob ran up to Bella's room, completely heedless of their nudity, out distanced only slightly by Embry's head start.

Bella was clutching her sheets to her naked breast, glaring at Rex, who was dressed only in his small clothes.

"What the _hell_ are you doing in my room? And where did my clothes go?" Bella screamed in a voice normally reserved for when she was chewing out a member of the Pack concerning their disregard for clothing.

Rex smiled charmingly, "Izzy, sweety, are you saying you don't remember last night?"

Bella's face flushed, a vein on her neck visibly bulging as she snatched her guilty-pleasure novel off the bookcase next to her bed and chucked it at the offending male's face. He moved deftly out of the way, causing the unfortunate book to fly past and peg a dumbstruck Jacob Black in the nose.

"Oh dear, it looks like we have some guests," Rex said, a smile plastered onto his face.

Bella gawked at the sight of her two half-brothers and Jacob Black crowding into her room. Her eyes bulged at the sight of Sam and Jacob in their birthday suits. Her face flamed up more than was healthy, and when she looked back up at the boys her usually warm brown eyes were steely cold.

"Put on some _clothes_!" She breathed. "How many times do I have to say it? You will put **clothes** on before entering my shop! Now, all of you, _**out**_!"

Embry was seriously worried that if Bella got any more worked up, she was going to have a heart attack. The acrobatics her heart was preforming for the werewolf's enhanced hearing certainly didn't sound at all healthy.

Bella backed up her statement with a flying romance novel. When that didn't dislodge the male interlopers, she picked up an unabridged dictionary (Embry assumed the adrenaline was giving her some extra strength) and flung it at them with enough force to knock Sam off his feet. Embry ran as he saw his sister reach for her pepper spray.

* * *

Bella huffed as she put on some clothes. Her day had gotten off on the very wrong foot. First, she awoke to find Fido in her bed, naked. But, that not being enough for the cosmic comedy that was her life, her naked older brother, half clothed younger brother, and naked best friend had to barge into her room. At which point she learned that she, too, was naked. Bella distinctly remembered climbing into her bed with clothing on. She suspected foul play on Fido's part.

"Speak of the Devil Dog, and he shall appear," Fido said in his guise as Rex, lounging comfortably against the window.

Bella just shut her eyes, took a deep calming breath, and massaged the bridge of her nose, "Aren't you supposed to be under my brothers' tender mercies at the moment?"

Fido shrugged indifferently, "I am free to occupy multiple locations at any given time, should I desire to."

"What, exactly, was that for?" Bella sighed, referencing the debacle only a few minutes earlier.

"Well," he paused as he abruptly appeared next to her to give an irreverent slap to her buttocks.

Whatever else Fido was going to say was abruptly cut off as Bella, filled with rage, slapped him. Of course, the slap had the side effect of causing a lightning bolt to arc off her fingers and send Fido flying out of the window. Her actions also precipitated the destruction of said window, and several feet of wall around it.

"See," Fido said, this time a wolf, as he rested his head on his paws, "You _can_ do it if you try," he finished smugly. He appeared beside her, none the worse for the wear Bella had attempted to inflict upon him. Bella made a visible effort to reign in her temper.

Last night – which had translated into about a week – Fido had done his level best to teach her the basics of combat related magic. Bella's blundering had nearly started several forest fires, when she managed to do anything at all. The one thing she did manage to do on a consistent basis was burn her eyebrows off. After days of excruciating failure Bella had given up, figuring she would never actually be able to blast lightning through her fingers or hurl fireballs. Fido had apparently changed his teaching tactics in response.

"Well, I'm sorry for being human, and therefore imperfect," Bella huffed out as she set to work rebuilding her wall. Fido was silent as Bella strained to undo the damage she had done in her fit of rage. Fifteen minutes later, when she was finished, the window looked like a bastardized parallelogram and all the wood panels were wavy and going in different directions.

Fido brushed his tail against the piece of modern art, restoring it to Pre-Angry-Bella conditions, "The fact you can only manage offensive skills when agitated is a serious blind spot, Isabella. If you intend to keep your brothers and their Pack from encountering vampires such as Victoria, you will need to step in and destroy them yourself."

Bella paused before turning to the now Rexified Fido, "She hasn't been able to catch any hikers. We made sure of it. I don't see why I can't just ignore her." Despite the fact that Victoria was out for blood, Bella still had an aversion to fighting, or killing, the vampire. Bella just didn't like violence.

Fido tilted his head at her, his eyes blazing a brilliant emerald green. "Very well, Bella," Fido said, his tone mild and sedate. "However, I have to request that you stop your brother before he breaks his fist on my face." Fido smiled, and was abruptly gone.

Bella sighed and walked out of her room to hear Sam yelling loudly at Rex, "You gave her something! Didn't you?"

Rex smiled amicably, "I have absolutely no idea what you're referring to."

Jacob shoved Rex, "What the fuck were you doing in her room?" Jacob was obviously concerned for her, as Bella thought any good friend would be. The thought of Jacob defending her and worrying over her lit something warm in Bella's breast. However, as the emotion washed over her, Rex turned to stare at her. His eyes didn't narrow, exactly, but Bella could tell he was displeased with something.

"Izzy, what miraculous timing," Rex said, his friendly persona once again in place. "Would you mind explaining to your protectors that I, in no way shape or form, besmirched your honor?"

Bella sighed, "We need to open soon, and then I have to go to school, Sam. He didn't do anything to me, and I have absolutely no idea why he was in my room. I went to bed and woke up with him next to me. If he'd done anything untoward, I would have probably noticed." She said wryly.

Sam paused a moment before growling his affirmative, "Jacob," he said once he'd calmed down slightly, "escort Bella's _guest_ to the elder's lodge. I'm sure he's late for a meeting, or something."

Jacob nodded and shoved Rex unceremoniously towards the door, "Oh, don't worry," Rex said, unlocking the door and stepping through, "I have to leave for a while on business anyway. I'll see you later, Bella." And with those final, and in Bella's mind distinctly ominous, words, Fido was gone.

* * *

School was a nightmare. She had to concentrate constantly on the barriers and illusions that separated Victoria from the rest of the wood. Fido had, in effect, trapped the vampire in a portion of the forest. However, his condition that she remained so was that Bella had to maintain the spellwork necessary to keep the sparkly demon away from any human life. It was taking its toll.

"Bella!" Lawrence called out to her once the period was over. Bella had taken meticulous notes on everything she had heard, and had done her best to listen to the lecture, but her concentration on the barrier prevented her from actually paying close scrutiny to the material they were supposed to be learning. Bella could only pray her grades wouldn't start to slip.

She joined her friends in walking to the cafeteria and then sat at the Pack table, which Kim joined in on. Bella focused slightly, changing her perspective and vision. She saw the threads connecting Kim to Jared, and how it pulsed with bright warm light.

Jacob and Quil had yet to return to school, though opinions were divided as to whether or not the two young werewolves could handle the social enterprise or not. For now, the cover story was that they were out with the flu, and were so also forbidden from working in the Bell Book and Bread in any visible capacity. They spent most of the day running patrols.

"Hey, Bella," Seth poked her in the side, causing her to jump.

Bella turned to smile warily at Seth, "What's up?"

Seth smirked and shook his head, "Leah just asked you whether or not today was alright for distributing those flyers for the study hall in the room you normally use for kids. A lot of the students want to come, but there's never enough room for them all." Seth repeated his sisters words, watching Bella carefully. After the Pack had finished putting all the bookcases up and the girls had finished shelving them, the Bell Book and Bread had become a spot for people to relax, whether they were reading or eating. Now, however, people wanted to study as well, seeing as how Kim had had the forethought to stock up on text books and AP study guides.

Bella just nodded, her eyes harrowed, "Of course, I'll…" Bella trailed off as her eyes bugged. She clutched at her chest and gasped for air.

"Bella!" Seth and Leah berated her with inquiries as to what was wrong. Jared and Kim leaped up and while Kim started fumbling about her purse for some Advil, Jared picked her up and carried her to the nurse's office.

"No…" Bella gasped out as they were almost there. "H…Home…!"

Jared quirked an eyebrow at the others, but Bella snatched Jared's face in her hands and bent it towards her own, "Now!"

They got home at break neck speeds. Seth tagged along, doing his best to look inconspicuous. He knew that if his sister hadn't been so concerned about what was wrong with Bella, she would have never allowed him to join them. She hated it when he skipped school, even though she was fine doing it herself on occasion.

They entered through the back door, so as to not disturb the customers, but Leah quickly went to inform Emily of the situation. Bella stumbled up the stairs into her room, gasping out that she would be fine, and just needed some rest. Seth trailed behind her anyway, for some reason going unnoticed by his sister and the rest of her and Bella's friends, who had stayed to help Emily manage the usual lunch rush.

Seth, feeling a little creeper-like, but overwhelmed with curiosity, peeked into Bella's room to find her tearing her bookcase apart, until her hands alighted on an old, leather bound journal. She opened up to a bookmarked page and started reading. Latin tumbled from her lips, and a moment later, a pouch had appeared on the pages of the book, causing Seth to blink in astonishment.

Bella took what looked like a gum drop from the pouch and tossed it into her mouth. Her breathing calmed shortly after, color returning to her face. Her gaze spun towards the doorway and Seth backed up, bolting down the stairs and into the kitchen to ask what he could do to help.

But he couldn't help but wonder what in the Spirits' names was going on.

* * *

Bella helped out at the Bell Book and Bread for the rest of Lunch before heading back to school with her friends. The entire time, she mulled and stewed over how to fix the damage done by her overextending herself. She had thought she'd be strong enough to handle things on her own. She had been wrong.

Victoria had gotten out of the forest. Bella didn't want to think about the consequences at the moment. After all, Fido had been the one to set the whole thing up. Bella had no idea how to do any of it herself.

After school got out, she managed the dinner rush with Leah and Emily. Kim had spent the evening making plans for outdoor seating in order to help with the overflow. By the time they closed, Bella was emotionally drained. She had no idea what to do about Victoria on her own. And then, it got worse.

"We smelled a leech today on our patrol," Jacob said during the Pack meeting. Bella's heart clenched as she realized she had lost control of the barrier when Jacob and Quil, the two least experienced members of the Pack, were patrolling. The thought of Jacob confronting Victoria sent tendrils of fear winding their way about Bella's now hammering heart. She couldn't let him be hurt.

Sam's brow furrowed, "Did you-" Sam cut himself off as Seth walked in with Kim, who looked chagrined. She had been trying to keep Seth away during the meeting. Bella absently noted that Seth had grown a lot in the past couple weeks. He cut an imposing figure in the doorway.

"Bella, do you mind coming with me a minute? I wanted your opinion on some of our ideas for the outdoor seating area," Seth asked.

"Sure, just let me finish getting some food for these monsters. I'll be right out," Bella smiled at Seth's inclusion of her technically disinclined self in the upgrades to the Pack Den.

As Seth walked out the door, Sam started back up again, "We're going to enforce double Patrols from now on. I don't want any leeches coming anywhere near the Rez again, furthermore, I-"

"Feel free to dig in," Bella interrupted her brother with a smile, while Sam glared at her. "Sam," Bella addressed her brother's stormy expression, "you're already full up on patrols. Yes, partnering everyone up on patrols is a good idea. But there's no need for any of you to be paranoid about any of this. Just calm down, relax, and do what you were built to. Eat like pigs and kill vampires," Bella said with a wink and a smile directed to the entire Pack. She didn't want to see any of them hurt, but them going crazy about this would only make things worse. She had to do something. Bella stepped outside, bringing Leah with her so she could take both Leah and Seth home once they were done with the plans for the modifications to the outside.

Bella and Leah both looked over the plans that Kim and Seth had prepared, "Good work you two," Bella said with a smile.

Leah snorted, not as easy to please, "Yeah, these are all great concepts. But it's going to take a while for us to build up the capital to buy the materials. Sure, we have slave labor," she waved in the direction of the Pack, occupied with their feeding, "but stupid men aren't going to cause lumber and paint to appear from thin air. We're going to need another couple weeks, at the least, to build up the money for this project."

Seth fidgeted, "We could try toning it down a little. We could start with some of it and then build on it as we get the money."

Bella thought about it, "We're fine for now. We can barely handle all the customers as it is. The couple of weeks will give us time to work out a better working schedule between all of us."

They talked for a while longer about how to work out the rotations, now that Kim had joined the Wolf Girls, and she agreed to try and take some shifts as both a server and an assistant chef. She was also in the process of planting some more aesthetic plants around the shop, as Bella's predecessors already had an herb garden overlooked by the kitchen which Kim had taken to tending with Bella and Emily. Everyone except for Bella had been curious as to how the herb garden had survived, and thrived, without the intervention of human hands. Bella knew that nothing human was involved in the original planting of that plot of land. And yet, so far, things were going well for everyone. Except for Bella.

"Why can't we stay over? Doesn't Bella have that spare room? You can sleep there, Lee, and I can sleep on the…uh, couch," Seth complained as Bella loaded the two siblings into her truck.

Leah glared at her younger brother, "You've been hanging out with Paul and Jacob too much. They're converting you to their pervy ways."

"Hey!" Seth shouted, appalled that his sister, and possibly Bella, thought of him as a pervert. Well, he had been spying on Bella that afternoon, but that was for her own good.

Bella just laughed at the antics of the sibling pair as she drove them home. As she stepped out of the truck, however, to greet Harry inside, she stumbled into Seth. He caught her, clutching Bella to his chest as he breathed in her scent.

Bella, however, didn't register any of this. Seth was warm. Too warm. In point of fact, she was so shocked she didn't struggle when Seth hugged her. It took Leah jerking Bella away from her brother to snap Bella out of her reverie into another one. Leah's hand was just as warm. How could she not have noticed earlier? Seth looked older than he should, and he now towered over Bella, though he was still a head shorter than Jacob. Leah, too, looked taller and fiercer. As Bella concentrated, she could feel their wolves baying at the doors. They wanted out.

Leah had pushed Bella away as the two siblings argued about Seth's habits. Bella focused, suppressing the wolves in the both of them. She wouldn't allow Leah to succumb to her wolf. She refused. It would be too cruel, Leah forced to live Sam's love of her best friend. And poor Seth was so young. He didn't deserve what freedom he had stripped from him by dint of fate and genetics.

As Bella strained against their wolves, barely mastering Leah's, she noticed the door open and Harry stumble out. She saw the pallor of his face as he realized, as Bella had, what was going on. His children were about to phase. Since Bella was already in tune with magic, she saw what that shock did to him. It stopped his heart.

"Leah!" Bella shouted, giving Leah's wolf one last monumental shove. It went silent, and Leah's posture relaxed slightly until she turned to her father. Bella's world spun with the effort, and she saw stars. It took all her willpower to remain upright, but she and Leah had more to do. Upon seeing her father on the ground, she sent Seth to get their mother and bolted to her father's side, crouching down next to Bella.

Bella for her part abandoned her attempt to keep Seth's wolf at bay. She had bigger issues to deal with. She placed one hand over Harry's forehead and another over his heart. She let her mind drift into his body, feeling with her soul where the damage was. After a breath, she noticed the damage done to his heart by lack of blood flow and a slight weakness, present since birth.

Bella closed her eyes and focused more. Sweat poured down her pallid face as she forced the dead cardio muscular cells to regenerate. She gathered lipids, carbohydrates and proteins from Harry's body and slowly built his heart back up to working levels. Slowly, ever so slowly, his heart started to beat once again. Some part of Bella's mind that wasn't completely taken up by the magic noticed Harry gasp beneath her fingers. She pushed harder. She bombarded the plaque buildup in Harry's arteries. She reinforced the valves of his atrium and ventricle, eliminating his heart murmur. She felt Harry open his eyes.

Idly, Bella noticed warm arms encircle her as she fell backwards, into the blackness.

* * *

Bella regained consciousness slowly, her consciousness rising gradually from the deep abyss of dreamless sleep. The only thing she realized was that her head hurt. A lot. It felt like Sam, Embry, Jacob and the rest of the Pack were playing bite clawball in the limited confines of her cranium. She let out a belabored moan. Her throat hurt too.

"Welcome back, Sleeping Beauty," Leah's usual sarcastic lilt was deadpan flat. Bella cracked open her eyes to see Emily, Leah and Kim sitting by her bedside in the Bell Book and Bread.

"Shit," Bella croaked out.

Emily arched an eyebrow before handing Bella a glass of water, "You've been asleep for about a day. Sam nearly phased at the dinner table when Sue Clearwater brought you back."

Bella coughed, "That bad, huh?"

Kim glanced up at the other two, "Not as bad as when Leah told us that Harry had had a heart attack. A heart attack that didn't kill him."

Bella's eyes nearly bugged out of her head, "Does the rest of the Pack know?" Bella nearly jumped out of the bed, grabbing onto Leah. She feared for them. Bella didn't want to think of the Pack's reaction to her stewardship. Leah just shook her head.

"Only the three of us," Leah said quietly.

Bella let out a sigh as she settled back into her bed.

"Bella…" Kim started, looking to Emily for help. She had no idea how to go about this.

"Did you stop Seth from phasing?" Leah said bluntly. Emily and Kim both spun to face their compatriot, raising their eyebrows at her in an attempt to signal her to slow down.

Bella blanched, "Yes."

"Did you stop me from phasing?"

Bella closed her eyes, "Yes."

The three sitting girls exchanged glances, "Why didn't you tell us?" Emily asked at last.

Bella smiled bitterly, "Not allowed." The four girls let the silence hang before Bella began to cry silently, tears running down her ruddy cheeks, "I'm so sorry."

Leah hugged her crying friend, "You have nothing to be sorry for. Nothing at all," she said softly, stroking Bella's mussed hair.

"Bella?" Seth poked his head into Bella's bedroom. His near phasing had caused him to bulk up to match his newfound height. While he wasn't as muscular or strapping as the other members of the Pack, he certainly no longer looked like an average High School student. "You OK?" He asked solicitously, edging his way towards where Bella was reclining in bed, the Wolf Girls surrounding her.

Leah arched her eyebrow at her little brother, "Well, if it isn't the little perv himself."

Bella's eyes widened as she felt Seth's still unstable wolf rear up at the comment. She closed her eyes and concentrated, "Leah," Bella said, her tone a soft rebuke.

Seth narrowed his eyes at Bella, feeling something stir and subside within him all at once. There was a gentle pulse beating in his chest, separate from his own, but just as integral. He could feel it connecting him to Bella, "What are you doing, Bella?" he asked quietly.

She scooted back in bed to lean against the headboard, "Making sure you don't rip my bedroom apart on accident," she said with a small smile. She was breathing heavily and her cheeks had flushed from the exertion of keeping Seth calm. The members of the Pack that had already phased were never this much work. It probably had to do with keeping something still that didn't want to be.

Emily motioned Seth to sit, and he sat down at the bedside, joining the few who knew about Bella's secret from the Pack, "Is there still a chance Leah will phase like Seth?" Emily asked curiously. The three girls had interrogated Harry, after his miraculous recovery, and he had told them the same story Billy had told the council. Bella had been chosen. No one was to interfere with her. The girls and Seth had no idea what that meant in the slightest.

Bella shook her head, narrowing her eyes at Leah, "Whatever it was I did to keep Leah's wolf down appears to have been permanent. I can't feel it in her anymore." Bella sighed and leaned back into the bed, exhausted.

"Can you fix Seth?" Leah demanded, causing Emily and Kim to start. Bella just opened her eyes and looked at Seth, who had turned to his sister.

"I don't need _fixing_, Lee Lee. I'm fine!" Seth's cheeks flushed red with anger, and he started trembling minutely. Bella placed her hand on his arm, again assuaging Seth's inner wolf. It wasn't working. Bella concentrated harder, pouring more of her energy into the effort of subduing Seth's wolf. Eventually, once both Leah and Seth had finished arguing about why being a wolf would be good or bad, Bella managed to ameliorate Seth's agitation.

"You two really need to stop doing that," she coughed as she gulped another glass of water. Bella felt better, even after only a few minutes of wakefulness, but she didn't think she'd be able to manage any serious magic for a while. She certainly shouldn't try actually healing major injuries unless she had at least a day to rest.

A raven flew over and pecked at Bella's window. Everyone arched an eyebrow at Bella, who blushed, "Just let him in," she huffed. Seth stood up and opened the window, allowing the raven to fly in and perch next to Bella's head on the headboard.

"What is it, Munin?" Bella asked as the raven started cleaning its feathers.

"Nothing much, mistress," Munin said in a voice conspicuously similar to Jacob's. "The forest and the Pack are safe. No one has come to harm," he said, giving her a little bow before taking off again.

"Well," Kim said after a brief and incredulous silence on the part of the Wolf Girls and Seth, "I suppose that explains why that eagle dropped off some fish for you."

Bella blushed and shrugged, chagrined at Fido/Rex's continuous pranks. She was glad her friends had discovered some of the truth, but she knew that Fido wouldn't allow the rest of the Pack to share their understanding of the situation.

"Listen," Bella said, "the rest of the Pack can't know about this. Technically, none of you should either. The only reason you know is because I've been screwing up lately."

They nodded, but Leah's face brightened with understanding, "Wait, are you saying your episode at school was because of this?" she referenced what everyone had thought had been a panic attack.

Bella nodded her head, "I overexerted myself, magically. I was trying to keep vampires away from La Push. I guess I just pushed myself too hard."

Kim's brow furrowed, "Why would you keep Vampires away? I thought that's what the Pack was for."

Emily shook her head, instantly understanding, "I know Sam and the others like to say they can handle it. But I'd prefer you keep as many of those leeches away as possible. I feel better with them elsewhere."

Leah seconded her cousin's opinion. Seth remained stoically silent, his slight pout indicating he thought the guys could take any vampire the Pack came across. Seth had been filled in on the Pack activities by Leah and Emily after he had helped his mom drag an unconscious Bella up to her room. Seth's only problem with things was the fact that he himself hadn't yet phased. To Seth, the Pack sounded like an exclusive club that he didn't have the qualifications to join. And he desperately wanted in but, if he was right about the furtive looks Bella was giving the door and window, he'd have his chance soon enough.

* * *

Bella was so glad Munin had lied. She had no idea what she would do if Emily and the others had learned that Victoria had returned. With another vampire. Bella shook her head as she trudged deeper into the forest, where she could feel Victoria and the other vampire. It had taken her an ungodly amount of time to rest enough to even get out of bed, but she had to do this before Sam and the others found the two vampires.

Bella had managed to distract the three other Wolf Girls with the fact that she needed them to get breakfast and lunch ready for the Pack, as well as open the Bell Book and Bread. It was decided that, since Bella was perceived of as out of commission, Kim would step in for as long as she was able. Bella felt horrible about lying to them. Again.

She should have just told them the truth. But she'd known they would never have allowed her to do this on her own, and Bella simply didn't know how to keep Victoria and her new companion away with magic.

Bella froze as she felt the forest around her ripple with agitation. A malevolent presence appeared at her back, "Well, well, Isabella Swan. I certainly never expected you to come see me on your own."

Bella turned around to gaze at the redheaded beauty transfixing her with deep black eyes. Behind Victoria, a blonde young man stood, arms crossed, obviously on the lookout for the Pack.

Bella took a deep breath, attempting to calm her trembling nerves, "What do you want, Victoria?"

Victoria arched an eyebrow at Bella's mostly calm tone, "Why, my dear sweet Isabella, I'm here to kill you, of course," she said as if she were running a simple errand. "Your mate, Edward, slew James. And now, I'll slay you. It's a pity Edward won't be here to hear you scream, but I'll ensure that the state I leave your corpse in will tell him who was responsible." Victoria smiled sweetly, but didn't notice the other vampire look up, confused, at the mention of Edward being her mate.

"So, a mate for a mate is it? This is for James?" Bella asked, breathing deep and taking the forest into her lungs, only to let out a small part of herself as she exhaled. The young blonde vampire's eyes looked pained at the mention of James. Perhaps he didn't know.

"Don't you dare speak his name, whelp!" Victoria spat. "He died simply because he wanted to drain you, as is our right. You're just a human. A nothing. Even your vampire lover has left you. And once I finish with you, he'll join you in death, but not before I've taken care of your little kennel." Bella's heart palpitated wildly at the mere idea that Victoria would attempt to hunt her brothers and Jacob, the Pack, her Pack. She needed to do something. Victoria had yet to actually advance on Bella, so she used the time to lock gazes with the blonde behind her.

His gaze shifted from Bella to Victoria, troubled by the revelation that James was her mate. Bella breathed out again, and called to the forest. An earsplitting groan sounded as a tree bent itself, slamming Victoria into the ground with a resounding crack. Bella gestured at the other vampire, and brambles and vines sprung out of the ground, entangling him and pulling him into the earth.

Victoria let out a shriek of displeasure as she attempted to claw her way out of the dirt, the other vampire was busy trying to rip the vines off, only to have them grow faster than he could dislodge them. All the strength in the world would not tear that which bent with strength. Or at least, that was what Bella was hoping. As Victoria managed to haul herself out of the ground, Bella gestured at the redheaded demon again, attempting to ensnare Victoria in a similar trap.

Victoria, however, was too quick for the vines and brambles to tangle around her, and deftly dodged around before wheeling on Bella. Bella flung her arm outwards towards the area in front of her, Victoria sprinting strait at her. The earth rose up into a ramp beneath Victoria's feet, causing the vampire to trip and fly over Bella's head and into the deep growth.

Bella reached out in the direction Victoria had flown in, making a fist. The undergrowth surged forward, a living tide intent on drowning the bloodsucker with dirt and compost. Victoria struggled to regain her balance, and the moment she had regained a scrap of leverage, used it to vault towards the nearest tree. Aware that Bella was somehow controlling the forest around her, Victoria jumped to the next tree only to have the perch she had just abandoned snap at her heels. Victoria spring boarded off the second bole, turning midair to land behind Bella.

Bella spun around, staring in horror as Victoria's hand reached out to encircle her neck. Only to be flung aside as Seth bowled her over and tackled Victoria, phasing as he did so, landing atop the vampire in a tussle of fur against stone.

Bella, exhausted by the enormity of the spellwork she had wrought, struggled to a sitting position, only to see Victoria slam her hand into Seth's ribcage with a resounding crack. Seth howled, and Bella watched in sheer horror as Victoria flung him bodily against an outcropping of rock. Seth slammed against the cold surface with a sickening wet crack, falling limp to the forest floor. Bella could hear him take one last deep gurgling breath before he phased back to his human form. He didn't get up.

Bella couldn't even bring herself to breathe as she gazed at Seth's limp body. Seth's limp corpse. She searched desperately for some hint of life, a spark, a tiny flame. There was nothing. Just the cold.

Bella was jolted out of her reverie by the sound of Victoria's laughter, high, clear, beautiful and cruel.

"Well, Isabella, you're certainly a human full of tricks. First, you seduce a vampire. Then, you sick a dog and a forest on me. What's next? Are you going to pull a flamethrower out of your hair?" Victoria laughed as she started walking slowly towards Bella, certain her prey was out of tricks.

Bella, slumped down, her hair falling about her face, glaring at Victoria. She had killed Seth, and at that moment, Bella wanted nothing more than for Victoria to wallow in eternal agony. She didn't deserve the peace of death.

Victoria's foot sunk slightly into the loamy earth on her next step. She glared at Bella before attempting to force her leg out of the muck. Instead, she sank deeper. Victoria wiggled in frustration, her flailing only causing the soil to swallow her all the quicker. Finally, overcome with panic and exasperation, Victoria grabbed a hold of her left leg with both arms, ripping it out of the soil. Only to find it was gone.

There was no puss, no fuss, no leaking venom, no nothing. Her right leg, going up to her knee where it had sunk into the forest floor, was simply gone. Victoria fell backward in surprise, mouth open to let loose a scream of horror. Instead of sound, dirt and leaves spilled forth from her horrified lips. Victoria's vision blurred as a singular earthworm popped out of her left eyeball before burrowing into her right. Bella stared at Victoria's form, contorting in agony, until the vampire had sunk beneath the surface of the forest, doomed to forever nurture the trees and the animals, forbidden from the release of death.

Bella's icy rage turned to shock and horror as she scrambled to Seth's now human body. She felt it now, barely there, a hint of life. It was there, she was sure.

Bella scrunched her eyes shut, gritted her teeth, and laid her hands on Seth's still warm chest, loosing herself in the younger boy's body. She realigned his bones, weaving them whole and strong. She knitted torn flesh where his body's regeneration hadn't yet managed. She fixed his organs, willing them wholesome and working. But he didn't open his eyes.

Tears sprung to Bella's eyes as her fingers flitted over Seth's chest and face, heedless of his nakedness.

"Fido!" Bella cried, in anguish. And then, he was there, with her.

"What is it, Isabella?" Bella felt Fido at her back. He was calm and composed as usual, completely immovable in his certainty of the course of natural events.

"Help me. He can't die. He's too young. I'll do anything, give you anything, just don't let him die!" She sobbed.

Fido sniffed at Seth's limp corpse.

"He is already dead. His soul has left his body. It only remains tethered to this plane by the tiniest of threads, woven by the magic of your anguish and desire. I am not allowed to traffic in death, Isabella. Such is not my providence. There is a high price for what you ask." Fido's tail brushed over Seth's sightless eyes, closing them.

Bella shook her head, her tears dripping onto Seth's body, "I don't care."

Fido leaned into Bella's face, his snout scant inches from her own nose, "You will pay the price for this?"

Bella closed her eyes, "Anything." She already knew what he would ask of her. It didn't matter. Seth was too good, too pure, to give his life for hers. Bella wouldn't allow it.

Fido nodded and disappeared. Bella could feel his mind brush up against hers, could feel the life and energy in every inch of the forest, in the state, the continent, the planet, and beyond. She could touch all of it. She felt an infinitesimally small part of the whole, still staggering to her only human mind, coalesce and rest inside her too small heart.

"I may go no further, Bella."

Bella breathed the energy into Seth, using it to rebind his soul to his body.

Seth shuddered and his eyes shot open, a deep breath causing his heart to beat as he felt fire ripple along every inch of his skin and muscle, all the way down to his bones and soul. Bella touched his face gently with her hands, as if afraid he might break.

"Bella?"

Bella broke down, sobbing that he was alive, as Seth cradled her to his naked chest.


	9. Changes

AN: OK, it's been a while. Life has been...well, life. But no sob stories. I recently received some encouraging reviews which have encouraged me to continue. So here you are. As always, I apologize for the delay. I can't say I'm going to be able to update regularly, but I will try and give you a more consistent update than once every blue moon. And oh, I hope everyone's in for some major POV changes ;)

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

* * *

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

-Kong Fu Zi (Confucius)

* * *

Seth woke up uncertain of what was going on around him. Moments earlier, he had been…floating? The word "float" lacked something, an oomph of a sort, but he still felt it was good enough. He had been floating, the only indicator of where he had been was that he realized it was nowhere in particular, but he had been floating around somewhere. Somewhere that was nowhere. Seth elected to move his train of thought forward before his head began hurting any more than it already had. Then, he had heard Bella's voice. Softly at first, slowly building into a loud crescendo that had woken him up from wherever it was that he had been floating.

And that was when the truly strange stuff had started to happen. He had expected to wake up in his room, or perhaps in the spare room of the Bell Book and Bread, with Bella in the room. In some of his more outlandish fantasies, she would have prepared breakfast for him, perhaps feeding him in bed, perhaps eating it in the bed with him. What followed usually precipitated certain physiological phenomena that required the use of his favorite hand to solve.

So, when Seth woke up this time, he was fairly certain he was still dreaming. He had to be. After all, he was stark naked – and an order of magnitude more buff than he remembered being last; where had that six pack come from? – with a tearful Bella draped all over him. He was fairly certain he had had this dream some time before. Of course, Bella had been heartbroken over someone's – **coughJacobcough** – betrayal and had come to him for _comfort_.

Bella had never cried tears of joy over him being not dead before in his dreams. But, Seth comforted her all the same, whispering softly into her warm brown hair that he was most certainly alive. He was also somewhat thankful that her face was buried in his chest, meaning she was unable to see the profuse blush spreading across his cheeks. He was thanking every spirit ever that his blood had decided to rush to his face as opposed to other portions of his anatomy. He wanted this dream to last.

The bucket of fate decided to drop the cold water of reality on Seth's delusions a mere moment later. Bella's sobs began to subside, which Seth of course attributed to his proximity and comforting aura. However, shortly after, she stopped moving entirely. With his newly enhanced senses – Seth certainly never recalled a time when he had been able to feel Bella's presence with such clarity of smell, sight and touch – he could tell that her heart was still beating, and that she was still breathing. However, she was barely doing either.

Seth was usually a very mellow, easy going young man. In point of fact, he liked to consider himself rather chill. So chill, in fact, that it was near impossible to get him to panic. In this particular instance, however, he decided he should be allowed to panic. After all, he had woken up in the middle of a forest, naked, suffering from a very alarming bout of amnesia regarding the night prior and had subsequently discovered that his friend, and crush, was, for all intents and purposes, dying.

What exactly had they done last night? The extremely rational portion of his mind was allowed that particular bit of victory before being blasted by the rest of his brain, firmly in the grip of testosterone.

So he panicked. He bumbled about the clearing, acclimating to the body he was living in, but which certainly felt entirely different from his own, while simultaneously looking for a cell phone. When he found no trace of his own clothing or phone, he patted down Bella, too hyped up on adrenaline and fear to feel embarrassed about it. Again, he found nothing.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Pick her up and carry her home."

The unexpected voice caused Seth to jump. He spun around to find a raven standing next to Bella, staring at him.

Seth blinked.

"What? Did resurrection damage your hearing? I said pick her up," the raven nodded its head towards Bella, "and take her home. If you don't know how to get back to the Bell Book and Bread, I'll show you." The raven arched an imperiously exasperated eyebrow at him. Which was a problem, as Seth was relatively sure ravens lacked eyebrows to arch, let alone the way this particular avian was doing it. Seth rubbed his eyes and sat stupefied for a moment more before doing as the bird told him.

He had woken up, naked, in a forest. He had no memory of how he had gotten there. Bella was on the verge of death. And a raven was telling him what to do. This had to be a dream.

As he contemplated his sister's response to her now not so little brother showing up naked with her friend in his arms, though, he amended that thought. This was a nightmare.

* * *

Seth paced around the spare room of the Bell Book and Bread. After the Raven had escorted him back to Bella's shop, Emily, Leah and Kim had quickly taken control of the situation. None of them had looked the least bit happy about it, but none the less, they had been the most qualified. Until the Elders had shown up.

Billy, Old Quil and Seth's father, escorted by his mother, had all shown up, all claiming to have been called there by another raven. Unfortunately enough for Seth, they had all arrived while Seth was still very much naked and holding a still unconscious Bella, who was busy dangling rather limply in his arms. Seth found her surprisingly light.

The arched eyebrows he had received from his father and mother, as well as the other two council members in attendance, usually would have made him blush and smile. Instead, he had snapped at them. He had to admit, a part of him was happy that he had finally phased, but he rather wished he was exempt from the famed werewolf temper.

And the burning in his gut. And the twisting, wrenching pain in his bones. Oh, and the lovely feeling that his skin was stretched too thin to hold him, like he was some sort of overstuffed pastry, with filling oozing out of every available orifice. If pastries had orifices. In the infamous words of Bilbo Baggins, he felt like butter spread over too much bread.

Seth's stomach grumbled. The analogies had made him hungry.

The wolf girls, along with the council members, had exiled Seth upstairs in order to discuss what was going to be done about Bella, despite the fact that none of them really knew what was going on. Bella's condition was stable, according to Sue, but showed no signs of improvement. Apparently, the trauma of battling a vampire and snatching Seth from whatever life threatening condition had gripped him, if his story was in fact accurate, had proved too much for her to handle. Sue wasn't sure as to the extent of the damage, nor could she be without a CT or MRI, but the rest of the council vetoed any attempt at medical procedures by a hospital. The debate went on well through the night, right up until the sun broke, with Seth perched at the top of the stairs, eavesdropping with his superior hearing, throughout the whole thing.

* * *

Seth bustled about the Bell Book and Bread after closing, cleaning the place up while the Wolf Girls conferred, having kicked the rest of the Pack out for the moment. They and the Elders had decided to keep Bella upstairs and not at the hospital, for lack of a believable enough explanation as to what events had transpired, and a lack of a clear understanding for her condition. They didn't exactly want Bella being examined if it ended up with her being whisked away by Federal agents who were a part of some clandestine agency bent on spirits-only-knew-what.

However, when the rest of the Pack, Bella's brother and Jacob among them, had discovered Bella's condition, the Wolf Girls had been forced to calm more than a few tempers. From the way Leah had described the whole ordeal, the only thing keeping the Pack out of Bella's room was Emily ordering Sam to order the rest of the Pack that they were expressly forbidden from doing just that. Of course, that hadn't stopped Sam and Jacob from "pitching the most bitchy man fits ever" according to his sister. Seth wished he could have been there to see what had happened, but he had apparently slept through the whole thing.

"How are we going to deal with her school work, though?" Kim's voice snapped Seth out of his reverie.

Emily shook her head and sighed, "I suppose all we can do is get the Elders to pen a note to the administration. Ideally, you and Leah can simply gather up the work from Bella's classes and give them to her when she's recovered."

Leah snorted at that, "Hell, Em, we don't even know _if_ she's going to recover at this point. I don't know about you, but turning an indestructible-blood-thirsty-rock-that-farts-rainbows into mulch with your brain doesn't exactly sound like the type of thing you can just get over. I wonder what gave our local Wonder Woman that idea?" Leah stared pointedly at Emily.

Emily, however, didn't flinch, "I admit, telling Bella to keep an eye out for the wolves might not have been the best idea, in hindsight. But I didn't know that she would go this far, or that this would happen, Leah. None of us could have known."

Leah slapped the table with both hands, pushing her chair back as she stood, "That's bull, Em. We all know that the gang of furry superheroes was designed for this fucking shit, not Bella and certainly not…" Leah shook her head for a moment, "and not Seth."

Emily stared Leah down until her cousin had resumed her seat, "We're all new to this, Leah. Bella obviously did a lot to make sure the Pack wouldn't get tangled up in this, to say nothing of us. We don't even know why or how Bella can do all of this. For all we know, it might have been her duty to-"

The word "duty" set Leah off again. She thundered to her feet again, this time without the hand slapping, with Emily rising to match her. Kim, however, intervened before either of the other girls could vent their frustrations, "Please, calm down, both of you. We have to trust that what Bella did, she did because she felt it was necessary, obligation to tribal tradition or not. But we still have to deal with the repercussions. From what Seth said, it doesn't look like there are any more vampires lurking around the res, but the Pack will still need looking after, and now, so will Bella. And as for Seth…" Kim trailed off and snuck a sidelong glance at the newest wolf, who had now stopped even the charade of cleaning and was openly staring at their deliberations.

"Oi, Boy Wonder!" Leah snapped at her brother, "Back to work."

Seth sighed and turned around to continue cleaning, only to drop his broom when he saw two people sitting at one of the tables he had just cleaned watching all of them. One of them was Rex, staring at the lot of them with a smirk on his face, but the other was new to Seth. He, too, was male, and like Rex exuded a sort of supernatural charisma and charm, but there was something off about the newcomer. He was dressed almost entirely in black, and where Rex was disarmingly casual, the black stranger was entirely formal. He had a black business suit matched with a white collared shirt, a silver tie, and black dress pants that ended at the ankle, with black loafers finishing off his polished look. The dark aspect to his appearance was only heightened by the fact he had almost alabaster skin made all the more pale by his attire and his well-groomed head of black hair and jet black eyes that seemed fixed on Seth, whereas Rex was focusing on the girls.

"You did say these would be entertaining, I suppose," the newcomer said as he folded one knee over the other, resting his wrists on the table, the image of a gentleman.

Rex smirked and leaned on his palm, his elbow resting on the table, "Aren't they just?"

Leah frowned, "How the hell did you two get in here? And who the hell are you?" She jabbed a finger at the stranger swathed in black. Seth shivered slightly, as the man's eyes too black eyes hadn't left his.

"You might call us the 'why and how' with regards to Isabella's array of supernatural talents," the stranger said.

Rex rolled his eyes, "In other words, we're the ones who chose Izzy."

Emily's brow furrowed, "But, from what the Elders said, the one that chose her was the…" Emily trailed off and her eyes widened.

Rex's smile grew, "Yup, that would be us, the Great Spirits themselves."

The dark man's eyes moved to Rex, breaking his hold over Seth, "You can keep that title, thank you, I prefer mine."

"And what's yours?" Kim whispered.

"Death. Would you be so kind as to fetch me a cup of something? I'm feeling rather parched at the moment," he asked politely. His tone was perfectly conversational, and he introduced himself as easily and as cordially as if they were all meeting at a summer salon.

Emily nodded and went to the kitchen to make them something. As she worked, Death turned his eyes back on Seth, "She really did a fine job on you, boy. Most zombies aren't quite so true to form, so to speak."

A shiver chased its way down Seth's spine, "What do you mean 'Zombie?'"

Death arched an eyebrow, "Exactly what I said, boy. You died, Isabella resurrected you," he paused to turn a glare at Rex, "with neither proper training nor an understanding of what she was doing."

Rex put his hands up in the air, "Hey, I wanted to keep her to myself for a bit. You're no fun, and there was the potential for all this," he waved a hand at the Wolf Girls, "drama."

"Sorry, but do you mind getting back to the part where you called my baby brother a brain muncher?" Leah growled out.

Death inclined his head, "Of course. Seth was quite dead when Bella set to work on him. Oh, she was relatively close in the healing, and had she been but a second or two faster, she might have succeeded. But she wasn't. Seth was, for all intents and purposes, mine. However, she pulled him back without a care for the consequences, or even an understanding that was what she was doing in the first place. Your brother died, Bella brought him back, and, by that set of criterion, your brother is a zombie." Death paused and gave Seth another chill inducing one-over, "An exceptionally well made zombie, however. I don't think I've ever seen a specimen quite so near to the original."

Seth felt the overwhelming need to sit down. He wasn't even quite sure he could be angry. He lifted his hand to touch his chest. _Thump thump thump._ He could feel his heartbeat. He brushed his hands through his hairs and felt the oily sweat caused by the conversation rub off on him. He took a deep breath and felt his lungs expand with the air. He looked up to see Rex smiling at him, and Death giving him another long enigmatic stare.

"I don't feel dead." Seth said as he marveled at all the things his body had done before, but he had never noticed.

"That's because you're not, Seth. You. Are. Not Dead." Leah said, her teeth gritted and her eyes hazed over with rage as she swung them towards the two spirits sitting at the table, waiting for Emily to bring them something to drink.

Emily rushed over with some tea, sugar, milk and some lemon. She wasn't quite sure how to ask the Great Spirit and Death how they took their tea.

Rex gulped his down, thanking Emily with a smile as she sprinted back to the relative safety of the Wolf Girl table. Death, however, sipped at his and looked down at the cup, swirling the contents slowly.

"It's missing something," he said before vanishing, only to reappear in front of Seth. He quickly thrust a plain steel poniard into Seth's chest right were the boy's heart was. Seth gasped as Death extracted the knife, walking calmly over to drip the blood in his tea as Kim and Emily were forced to grab Leah and restrain her from doing something rash.

Seth felt his heart stop. He lifted his hand over his chest again, brushing up against the smooth wound Death's dagger had made. There was no steady thump of life. He pinched himself. It hurt.

"Seth…" Leah's wavered as it ghosted up against Seth's ears.

Seth turned around, blood dripping from the wound in his chest, "I'm here, Lee Lee."

"Delicious. My compliments to you both, Emily, Seth." Death said as he stirred the tea with his dagger. He inclined his head to them both again before taking another sip from his steaming tea, his eyes lighting up as he smiled at the both of them.

Seth sucked in a tiny breath as the wound started to close, his heart starting up again with its labored beating.

Death shook his head, "Isabella really has done a remarkable job on you, Seth. Although I suppose it's warranted, given the state she left herself in as a result."

Kim perked up at that, "You know what's wrong with Bella?"

Death nodded and Rex smiled as he took point, "Izzy overextended herself, plain and simple. She'll be up and at 'em again after she's had chance to recover from her near death experience. I wanted her to push herself, to finish her training, and what better fodder than a blood sucker, am I right?"

"You…you did all of this just to test Bella?" Emily asked, eyes widening as she took in Rex's smiling face.

Leah chuckled darkly, "Well, did Death here take it badly that Bella killed one of his own?"

Death waved his hand dismissively, "I do not claim dominion over Vampires. They are another breed entirely."

Leah's brow furrowed, "But they're dead."

Death set his tea cup down, orienting the handle so it matched the saucer, "Just so. One need not have a beating heart in order to count oneself among the living. What you think of as Vampires belong to another. I do claim your brother, Seth, as one of mine, as I claim all zombies and eternals like him, even if it was one of my minions who created him."

Kim shook her head, "B-But I thought Bella was…" She stopped, unable to bring herself to finish the thought.

Rex smiled, "My thrall? Oh, she is, she just also happens to belong to our gloomy friend over here as well as me."

Death turned an unamused gaze on Rex, "A fact which you most conveniently concealed from me."

Rex rolled his eyes, "You're such a party pooper. You got her eventually, didn't you? And it's not like she's going to be hard to break in, now that I've given her the basics."

Leah gaped at the pair in horror, "Listen to yourselves! Bella and my brother aren't just some toys for you to play with. They're people!"

Death gave Seth a warm smile and he wanted to do nothing more than run – to his sister, to Bella, into the forest, just run – when he met those dark eyes again, "Why, my dear sweet girl, they're both."

* * *

Jacob did not like this. He was pacing around outside the Bell Book and Bread, and Sam had told him to stay put unphased and make sure he was available to help the girls out with taking care of anything. The problem was, they didn't seem to need any help. They had the kitchen working smoothly, taking care of the customers with the help of some of the triple B duty Pack members, but the girls had Seth, of all people, taking care of stuff with Bella. He had no idea why they would want Seth to help out, or why Seth was all of a sudden so tight with the girls. For that matter, there was the way Seth smelled and the new look he was sporting. Sam had asked the girls about the night they'd found out Bella had collapsed – something else that was fishy – but Leah had nearly castrated Sam for asking. When Sam had tried to go around Leah's back and appeal to Emily, his imprint had deftly skirted the issue. Then, after Sam had pressed Emily about it a little more, Emily had snapped at him too, borrowing a page from Bella's book and threatening Sam's stomach if he should ask any more too pointed questions.

Jacob didn't like any of it. Nothing about what was going on around Bella made sense at the moment. That, plus the fact that Jacob felt that he was actively being kept away from Bella made him very nervous. He had to figure out what was going on with Seth and the girls.

Jacob moved around the house, looking for the window he knew led to Bella's room.

However, as he neared the corner of the house between the back door and Bella's window, he heard Kim and Leah bickering on the other side of the house.

"Kim, we don't even know what else that thing is capable of yet. I don't want it on my brother unless it's absolutely necessary, at least until Bella wakes up," Leah's voice was hard as she debated with Kim. There was a faint rustling, the sound of aged paper scraping over itself.

Kim's reply was distracted and practiced, "I know, Leah. We've already had this discussion. I'm sure Seth can keep his cool until Bella wakes up, but we need to make sure Seth is…secure, in case something happens. Sam and the others aren't stupid, Leah, they're going to do something eventually. And I don't want to hear this when we're looking through Bella's 'do not touch' library to cut costs."

Leah snorted, "Hey, I just remembered seeing something useful in some of the books when I was checking to see if that thing was safe."

Jake could practically hear Kim roll her eyes, "Rex said that it wasn't going to do anything to Seth besides what we wanted. And don't just change the subject! I can't believe I agreed to this."

Leah's voice wasn't quite shrill, "I don't want to believe anything out of either of their almighty traps! Are you going to believe the two fuckers that put Bella in that situation? That put…that…" Leah trailed off, and Jake heard the sound of a soft thump on the earth and muffled cries, the scent of hot salty tears wafting on the breeze.

Kim made gentle soothing sounds, "I know, Leah. Emily knows too, despite the fact you two have been arguing so much. We're just trying to look out for everyone, Seth included."

"I can't trust them, Kim. I just can't. What if they're right about Seth? What if that thing doesn't just do what we want? What if-?"

Kim shushed Leah gently, "Don't worry so much." Kim sighed for a moment, the sound of parchment thing paper stirring once again, "Let's get on with this, Leah. I still can't believe we're doing this."

Leah's laugh lacked its usual edge, but remained forceful, "A cornucopia of fruits and vegies from your guys' super garden? Fuck yeah I'm going to cut costs and advertise the fuck out of that shit."

"Alright, here it is." Kim said after a minute or two more of ruffling through the book they had in front of them. Jacob felt comfortable enough trying to catch a peek at what the two Wolf Girls were up to.

"Jake, what are you doing here?" Seth's harsh voice sounded out of the window above him. Jake turned up to stare at Seth. The two of them had always gotten along before, but Seth had been very closed off to everyone ever since Bella had fallen ill. The only three people he had hung around were the Wolf Girls, and even then, he was usually relegated to Bella's room or the spare room of the Bell Book and Bread, which Sam, Jacob and the rest of the Pack had been made aware that, until Bella recovered, would be used to house her caretaker, Seth.

Leah rounded the corner, her eyes spitting out fire hotter than Hell itself as she looked between the two males, "Seth, get back inside and make sure Bella's alright."

Seth's brow furrowed and he frowned, "But Lee Lee, I-"

"Now, Boy Wonder!"

Seth growled a little, and Jake took a long look at the boy as he withdrew back into Bella's room. He had seen it in Sam's mind, but now Jake was sure for himself. Seth was either near phasing or already had. But, like Sam, Jake didn't understand why the girls were keeping it from them.

"As for you, Tall Dark and Cutsey," Leah's whip of a tongue caused Jacob to jump as he turned towards the tall girl, "go back to where the three of us put you. I don't care if you turn into a giant furry roadblock at the flip of a switch, Sam put you in our care, and you'll do what we want until you're otherwise told."

With that, Leah stalked back around the corner to Kim and Jacob was forced back to the other side of the house. He could feel Seth's eyes boring into him as he walked away, a ghost in the window.

And it was true that Sam had told the girls to use and abuse Jacob, first because he thought Jacob needed some more discipline, and second because he wanted a spy that none of the girls would suspect. Unfortunately for him, things weren't going as planned.

As Jake heard Leah howl in triumph and Kim let out a yelp of surprise, he was happy at least that someone's plans were bearing fruit, even if they weren't his. But this wasn't going to last long, as soon as Bella was up and about again, he'd have his chance to hang out with her and slowly reel her in. And nothing, not Seth, not Leah, not Sam, not the Great Spirit itself, was going to stop him.


End file.
